Clovis leaders are considering displaying the national motto “In God We Trust” in the City Council chamber.
The proposal was brought to the Clovis City Council in early September by a group of residents shortly after the Fresno County Board of Supervisors voted in August to install two signs in its boardroom.
Clovis resident Bill Scott told the council at a Sept. 8 meeting that, after seeing both the City of Fresno and Fresno County move to display the national motto, he and several residents felt Clovis should do the same.
“God’s morality is unchangeable. You can accept it and try and live up to it, or you can deny it, giving up God in order to feel comfortable in your sins,” Scott said. “That decision creates chaos and the need for an authoritative government. The relationship between government leaders and its citizens is enhanced when both mutually trust in God.”
The group gathered 72 signatures from Clovis residents, Scott said.
Another resident, Jani-Ann Kren, told the council she opposed to the proposal because the First Amendment of the Constitution ensures a separation of church and state that prohibits the government from establishing a religion.
“The chamber is decorated very nicely with symbols and pictures of Clovis’ history, and I think we should leave it that way,” Kren said. “I just think that we have done very well all these years not having any religious symbols in our council chamber, and I like to see it stay that way.”
Kran’s comment was challenged by supporters of the proposal. Clovis resident Kay Errotabere said the federal courts have consistently upheld the constitutionality of publicly displaying the motto, which she noted is printed on U.S. currency.
“Courts have noted that the motto reflects a historical acknowledgment of religion’s role in America, rather than an endorsement of a specific faith,” Errotabere said.
Mayor Pro Tem Diane Pearce asked city staff to further research the topic and put it on the future agenda.
“Staff is working on an outreach effort to ensure that the community has ample opportunity to share their thoughts before the decision is made on this matter,” said Clovis spokesperson Taylor Danielson. “This effort is still in the planning stages.”
More information will be available in the coming weeks, Danielson said.
Pearce said in a social media post this week that she and her husband have been part of the efforts for the past decade to have the national motto displayed in local government chambers. Two-thirds of the cities in Fresno County have already displayed it in their chambers, according to Pearce.
“Displaying the national motto is not only a patriotic exercise, but a humble admission that those in elected office are not the ultimate source of wisdom,” Pearce wrote on Facebook. “Our nation displays IGWT in a variety of high-profile places, including on our money and in the chamber of the House of Representatives, where it can be seen above the head of each President as he delivers the State of the Union Address.”
Pearce said she made the suggestion to cover the cost with private donations in lieu of city tax dollars.
Councilmember Drew Bessinger, who supports the displaying the national motto, also proposed to display some of the country’s founding documents in the chamber.
“Our council chambers are in need of a makeover, it’s been pretty much the same, probably since 1976 when they built it,” Bessinger said. “I just think if we’re going to do that, then we should probably do a comprehensive makeover.”
Those are importantversatile documents that established the country’s political system and the rights of all individuals, Bessinger said.
Bessinger, who was elected in 2017, said conversations about displaying the national motto in the Clovis council chamber had been suggested before, but never materialized.
“I think Nathan Magsig proposed it several years back, and it got no traction. I think it might have been after the City of Fresno had some negative [feedback] . There’s always going to be negativity one way or another, and I’m not saying negativity is wrong,” Bessinger said. “I can’t speak to what the council was thinking back then. I know it had been previously floated, I’m not positive what happened with it.”