The Athens City Council chambers reached full capacity Tuesday evening as residents filled the City Building, many attending to speak out following a recent controversy over whether the Pledge of Allegiance should be included at council meetings.
The turnout followed a debate at the Jan. 12 council meeting, when Councilmember Alan Swank, D-4th Ward, requested the pledge be recited before meetings.
Other council members disagreed, prompting discussion that later circulated online and drew attention beyond Athens, including the creation of a public Facebook event criticizing the council’s decision not to include the pledge.
“As far as the pledge, I’m very against it, for three reasons,” Councilmember Michael Wood, D-3rd Ward, said at the Jan. 12 meeting. “1. Article of faith. I'm a Quaker, so I don't do that. 2. It feels performative. And 3., I'm uncomfortable performing that in this current moment with this current administration.”
Councilmember Jessica Thomas, At-Large, agreed with Wood, saying as an atheist, she does not want to introduce religion or loyalty pledges into local government.
Joe Radwany, an Athens resident who works as a plumber and electrician, arrived at Tuesday’s meeting 40 minutes early but was forced to wait outside due to capacity limits.
“We’re still not sure why they won’t let us wait in the lobby, but I’m not sure we’d all fit because there's a lot of folks here that wanted to say something on either side of the issue, but again, I’m here to support common sense, the flag, the constitution and the pledge of allegiance,” Radwany said.
Radwany said attending the meeting was part of holding local leaders accountable.
“Freedom is responsibility,” Radwany said. “With great blessings come great responsibilities, and freedom takes work, and we need to hold our leaders accountable to do the right thing.”
The meeting began at 7 p.m. with routine business, including the disposition of minutes, reports and communications.
Council first addressed Ordinance 0-01-26, introduced by Swank, which would allow a building at 35 Elliot St. to place an in-ground sign in the city’s right-of-way.
Swank explained the city right-of-way refers to property owned by the city, often extending into residential or commercial yards, reserved for utility access and public use.
Council then moved to Ordinance 0-02-26, introduced by Councilmember Paul Isherwood, authorizing the annual purchase of water softening salt for the city’s water treatment plant. Mayor Steve Patterson said the original request was $240,000, but recommended reducing it to $230,000.
"If we have excess going into next year, that will certainly help with what we’re asking for in 2027 when we get to that point in time,” Patterson said. “But it’s better to have more than less, because we’ll have to come back to the council and ask for another appropriation to go back out and purchase softening salt.”
Council amended the ordinance to reflect the $230,000 figure.
Ordinance 0-03-26 addressed amendments to the 2026 appropriations made at the end of last year.
Resolution 01-26, which estimates the amount of interim monies for deposit in public depositories, passed unanimously.
Resolution 02-26, outlining the process for designating the public depositories to hold the city’s active funds, also passed unanimously.
After council business concluded, residents addressed legislative matters not covered during the meeting.
The public comment portion drew the largest crowd, with residents referencing last week’s pledge debate and online criticism of the council.
Aiden Fox, an Athens resident, said he attended after hearing council members characterize the pledge as “performative.”
“The reason that I am here is because after introducing that motion, several members of our city government, sitting right here in front of me, called our Pledge of Allegiance performative, said that they don’t feel comfortable saying it, saying that they believe it entails some kind of fealty swear to the current administration,” Fox said.
Fox argued the pledge represents broader national values.
*“When you say the Pledge of Allegiance, you are not being required to go to church,” Fox said. “You are not being required to bend the knee to the current administration, to whichever president is in power. You are being asked a very civilizational foundational question: Are you willing to express your support for the nation in which you reside?”
Keegan Chubb, a Nelsonville resident attending his first city council meeting, also criticized the decision.
“I’m here today because I find it very, very disrespectful to our government, our military and any soldier that ever fought for us and is fighting for us right now,” Chubb said. “I can say here, I’ve never been to a meeting in my life. I can read this room very well, and I can tell who would stand before that flag and say the pledge and who won’t.”
After public comments concluded, Council President Micah McCarey thanked attendees for their respectful democratic engagement, and the meeting was adjourned.
