{"id":421927,"date":"2026-08-02T19:11:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T19:11:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/421927\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T19:11:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T19:11:11","slug":"santa-barbara-erupts-over-guillotine-sign-at-city-hall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/421927\/","title":{"rendered":"Santa Barbara erupts over guillotine sign at City Hall"},"content":{"rendered":"

A protester at Tuesday night\u2019s Santa Barbara City Council<\/a> meeting on rent stabilization held up a controversial sign that insinuated they wanted to behead the political leaders.<\/p>\n

The sign read, \u201cYour term ends when we say so!\u201d and featured a guillotine alongside elephant and donkey symbols representing Republicans and Democrats.<\/p>\n

The meeting, largely attended by tenant advocates<\/a>, was also marked by hours of jeering, heckling and berating of councilmembers, City Administrator Kelly McAdoo and other city officials, according to Edhat Santa Barbara<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The jeering and heckling at the city council meeting was directed at officials including Kelly McAdoo, a city administrator.<\/p>\n

Santa Barbara councilmembers<\/a> reacted with the local media to the off-with-their-heads sign from the packed meeting.<\/p>\n

There are seven members on the Santa Barbara City Council, including six district councilmembers and the mayor. Eric Friedman, who is running for mayor, said that kind of sign was \u201cnot acceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a time when elected officials have faced threats, violence and even been killed, everyone should take time to think about the potential ramifications of their actions,\u201d Friedman said.<\/p>\n

Mayor Randy Rowse, who was the target of much of the aggressive behavior during the meeting, said he \u201c100 percent\u201d disapproves of the sign.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat kind of directed violent imagery tests the boundaries of free speech,\u201d he said. \u201cI assume the elephants on the picture indicate Republicans and perhaps it was directed at me. Too bad I\u2019ve never been a Republican.\u201d<\/p>\n

The protestor was seen at Santa Barbara City Hall meeting on rent stabilization. Getty Images<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Meagan Harmon also said the menacing sign was \u201cclearly unacceptable.\u201d \u201cI guess the First Amendment says it\u2019s okay, but like, does anyone say it\u2019s a good thing?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Mike Jordan said he regretted not speaking out against the sign during the meeting.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m extremely sorry, looking back, that I didn\u2019t just pop off about that, and the loud personal verbal attack on [McAdoo] and staff. \u2026 I\u2019m pretty much done politely dealing with immature [people] who think part of advocacy or discussion is jeering, attempting to intimidate, and generally acting like spoiled toddlers,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Oscar Gutierrez also said the sign was unacceptable, calling it \u201crage bait,\u201d but defended free speech rights.<\/p>\n

He said he plans to \u201cvoice my disapproval\u201d to those behind it and \u201cask the city attorney if we can limit signs at the public comment podium.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Councilmember Wendy Santamaria, who supports rent control, did not respond to questions about the offensive sign. Councilmember Kristen Sneddon<\/a> also did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n

The meeting, largely attended by tenant advocates, was also marked by hours of jeering, heckling and berating. Facebook\/@CityofSantaBarbara<\/p>\n

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