JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – First, Oklahoma lawmakers excluded the public from the Capitol because of coronavirus concerns.
Then with the public gone, lawmakers made an emergency change to the state's open-meetings law to let all governmental entities meet via video or teleconference, so long as people can watch or listen remotely.
Across the U.S., numerous governors, lawmakers, mayors and county officials have made similar decisions to keep the public away from public meetings — all for the sake of public health.
Ironically, the sudden policy shift has played out during the annual observation of “Sunshine Week,” a seven-day period intended to highlight the importance of open-government policies. “Public participation in our democracy is really