Shelter Island Letters to the Editor: Sept. 19, 2025
NEVER A YARD SIGN
To the Editor:
I was very happy to read that the GOP has decided against using any yard signs.
I have always felt that all political signs do is detract from the beauty of our island. Sign pollution litters our island and the material yard signs is made of is petroleum based, non-recyclable and ends up in landfills.
I had three successful campaigns for Town Board and never had a single yard sign. In my 2007 campaign I ran a full page ad showing me pointing to a faux yard sign saying to look closely since that was the only yard sign of mine you would ever see. I asked for your vote because I was the most qualified candidate, not because I had the most signs.
Never once has a yard sign convinced me to vote for a specific candidate. I continue to feel that way and always vote for the candidates who are the hardest working, most knowledgeable and experienced, which is why I will be casting my votes for the entire Republican slate.
PETER REICH, Former councilman, Town of Shelter Island
ROBUST EXPRESSION
To the Editor:
I am disappointed by the Shelter Island Republican Party’s decision to forgo political signs this election season. Yard signs, our time-honored expression of our support for candidates is a robust expression of our political freedom.
Both the content of the speech and the process of expressing political speech is vital to democracy. I have placed signs on my front yard for both Democrats and Republicans. The signs, within the parameters of appropriate “time, place, and manner,” are vibrant and inspiring.
I vote for more political speech, not less.
LAURA GENTILE, Shelter Island
KEEP THE DEBATE CENTERED
To the Editor:
I am writing this letter not representing any political committee, but as a private citizen.
Nationally, our democratic rights are under threat. Here on Shelter Island, we see a troubling local version of this: Republican leaders are trying to discourage residents from displaying lawn signs, claiming they want to “give residents a break from visual clutter.”
That argument doesn’t stand up. Research shows that lawn signs do influence elections — does the same evidence exist for campaign “swag?”
The burden on the Highway Department is negligible, since signs are not placed on Town property and homeowners maintain the areas bordering their own lots. And if the goal is to foster debate on real issues, why make lawn signs the first target?
Most importantly, property owners have the constitutional right to display signs on their land if they so choose. In the past, it was always fun — and not uncommon — to see a Republican sign for a candidate next to a Democratic sign for a different elected position.
We want to encourage that kind of thinking. It says: I like this person for this position and that person for that position. That is what makes Shelter Island so special.
So what is this really about? Visual clutter? Highway work? Or is it an attempt to limit free expression? The focus on signs looks more like a distraction from Shelter Island’s real challenges: protecting our water, improving waste management, and keeping our community affordable.
Free speech is not clutter. It is a cornerstone of democracy. Let’s protect the right of Islanders to express themselves — and let’s keep our public debate centered on the issues that matter most.
KATHLEEN GOODING, Shelter Island
STOP HATEFUL RHETORIC
To the Editor:
It is with a heavy heart that I write this letter.
Yesterday we witnessed another act of unthinkable violence against a young man whose views differed from his assassin’s.
Many today are mourning the death of Charlie Kirk. A 31-year-old husband and father who was shot dead while appearing before several thousand students on a college campus. An advocate for Christ and country, he was respected for listening to students express political opinions different than his and engaging them in dialogue. A kind man who died living his life’s purpose.
Clearly, unstable and evil people exist who perpetrate violence. Now is the time to stop the angry hateful political rhetoric, which may influence them.
Hitler was a monster and inhumane concentration camps should not exist. Comparing the president to him diminishes the horrors of the holocaust. Disagree with public policy but don’t use language that could rationalize killing.
ICE masks, unacceptable to some, are necessary due to the demonstrated violence against officers enforcing the law. A law Congress created. Masks help protect officers and their families from retribution.
After my last Letter to the Editor was published, a Shelter Island resident approached me and said in effect that my views were not representative of Shelter Island. Be that as it may, I continue to suggest that because this is Shelter Island, language meant to incite be toned down and that during our local election campaigns we be kind to one another.
KATHRYN A. CUNNINGHAM, Shelter Island
