City of Morgantown Shuts off Facebook Comments: BOPARC says no discussion allowed in Krepps Park scandal, in violation of 1st Amendment

by: Volunteer Contributors, Ty Morgan

BOPARC has disabled the ability of all Morgantown residents to comment on a post about the Krepps Park athletic court project on the official city social media page. WVMAD was tipped off by an apparent Morgantown government worker.

This is a violation of the 1st Amendment, according to the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Your Constitutionally-guaranteed right to give criticism is not welcomed by City leaders, as BOPARC disables commenting on official Facebook post regarding latest Krepps Park project; Supreme Court ruled social media blocking as unconstitutional

We reported on the troubled Krepps Park project just yesterday. To recap: this summer, Morgantown residents paid $200K for a "total replacement" of the Krepps Park tennis and pickleball courts after years of haphazard patching. However, the new replacement court required patching within mere weeks. The athletic courts were so uneven that folks on social media dubbed it the Krepps Park Pond.

So you ask, "Do I even have a right to comment on information issued by my government?" Yes, every American does.

The United States Supreme Court ruled that government social media pages are a public forum and therefore protected by the First Amendment. The government cannot restrict discussion or silence the public in any way without violating the Constitution.

While the government may administer the pages, they are owned by the people and for the people. It is no different than your right to attend public meetings and voice concerns or opinions.

Every resident in Morgantown has a legal right to participate in their government. Otherwise, our already problematic city will slide into darkness none of us want. Without open participation and different viewpoints, we have a dictatorship instead of a democracy. Dictatorships in third-world countries are infamous for censoring critical opinions on social media to shut down debate about their regimes.

Sang Yong Lee writes about the censorship in North Korea, "this war stems from the government’s belief that outside information ... causes fissures in people’s loyalty toward the regime, particularly the young generation, and poses an existential threat to society’s status quo." Lee is editor-in-chief of Daily NK, a newspaper based in Seoul, South Korea, reporting on the North Korean dictatorship via a network of informants.

Who holds the power in Morgantown? Top officials:

Andro Kim Haws a.k.a. “Kim Haws” is Morgantown’s City Manager, the highest-paid position in Morgantown although un-elected, as City Charter dictates that city council appoints the manager
Jennifer Mead Selin a.k.a. “Jenny” is Morgantown’s Deputy Mayor and a BOPARC Board Director; city council appoints the deputy mayor
Melissa Jane Wiles is BOPARC’s Executive Director
Mohummed Abdullah Ghannam a.k.a. “Joe” is Morgantown’s Mayor; city council appoints the mayor title

Ironically, this week is national Constitution Week. It has been said that as Benjamin Franklin was leaving the Constitutional Convention, he was asked whether the Founding Fathers gave America a monarchy or a republic. Ben Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

WVMAD has confirmed other BOPARC posts, regarding non-controversial topics, do have comments enabled. Therefore, it appears this is an intentional act.

What do you think, Morgantown? Should the City be able to silence residents and stop open discussions?