What Happened to Our Public Officials’ Ethical Standards?
A perspective from Trisha Lester
I was appalled when I read “Five Chapel Hill Town Council Members Endorse Incumbent Mayor for Re-Election” (Chapelboro.com, October 12, 2021). The idea that sitting Town Council members would publicly endorse a mayor running for re-election is beyond the pale. It is highly inappropriate, unprofessional for any public official, and calls into question ethical issues which cross from neutrality into partisanship.
Ethical standards are present in every sector, but the extent to which they are practiced is dependent upon the leadership and its commitment to the priority it gives ethical practices. Municipal government is no exception.
I worked in the nonprofit sector my entire career, and 26 years of it was at the statewide North Carolina Center for Nonprofits. We served 501(c)(3) nonprofits and, in an effort to model good behavior for organizations across the state, we developed “Principles and Practices for Nonprofit Excellence: A Self-Help Tool for Organizational Effectiveness.”
I’d like to know what the Town of Chapel Hill’s ethical standards are and who is responsible for overseeing them. They seem to be a little lax right now, and some officials may need to be reminded of how those ethical muscles need to be flexed in order to stay in shape.
I find it reprehensible that Mayor Hemminger would agree to this public endorsement (after all, the buck stops with her) and that Mayor Pro Tem Michael Parker and Council Members Jess Anderson, Tai Huynh, Amy Ryan, and Karen Stegman agreed to it.
We’re getting ready to elect a mayor and town council members, and voters need to know how they’ll act and what will drive their decision making. I’m calling out these public officials because I don’t approve of this behavior. It’s unfitting for their offices. They should have paused and thought twice about doing this, but clearly they didn’t. Voters, take note.
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