"No respect for God": Florida mayor denies "Day of Reason" proclamation
Critics are calling out religious bias after Mayor John Rees rejected the secular request
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The mayor of Winter Garden, Florida rejected a symbolic proclamation honoring the Day of Reason, then explained his decision by saying he didn’t care for people who refused to show “respect for God.”
It’s a stunning admission of religious superiority from a government official.
All of this started earlier this month when Joseph Richardson of the Central Florida Freethought Community asked the city to issue a Day of Reason proclamation. It seemed like a reasonable request given that the city has issued Day of Prayer proclamations in the past. Richardson even provided the following draft text:
WHEREAS, the principles of reason, critical thinking, and the scientific method are fundamental to the pursuit of knowledge, the advancement of society, and the betterment of humankind; and
WHEREAS, a secular and inclusive society, where all individuals are free to think and express themselves without fear of coercion or discrimination, is essential for a just and equitable world; and
WHEREAS, the First Amendment of the United States Constitution guarantees the separation of church and state, ensuring the freedom of conscience and the right to non-belief; and
WHEREAS, the National Day of Reason, observed on the first Thursday in May, provides an opportunity to celebrate these values and to advocate for a society grounded in reason and evidence;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that I, Mayor John Rees, do hereby proclaim May 1, 2025, as a National Day of Reason in Winter Garden, FL, urging all citizens to reflect on the importance of critical thinking, to engage in open and respectful dialogue, and to uphold the principles of secular democracy.
FURTHERMORE, I encourage all citizens to participate in activities that promote reason, science, and critical inquiry, and to stand in solidarity with those who advocate for a society free from religious coercion and discrimination.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 24th day of April, 2025.
There’s nothing in there that’s inherently anti-religious—unless you think promoting critical thinking is a not-so-subtle knock against faith—but more importantly, if you’re going to issue proclamations for the Day of Prayer, you might as well say yes to proclamations like these. No one’s going to accuse you of promoting atheism. Cities issue proclamations for all kinds of things. Refusing to do so will only draw negative attention.
The morning after Richardson submitted that request, the city clerk responded with a short message: “Proclamations are at the pleasure of Mayor Rees and presented to him for consideration by our City Manager, Jon C. Williams. Your request is being forwarded to both of them for review.”
Great. Simple enough.
But two weeks later, Richardson had still not heard from the city. He asked if there were any updates and received a blunt response: The proclamation wasn’t up for consideration, meaning it hadn’t been approved.
The proclamation you have requested as noted in this communication is not on the April 24, 2025 agenda.
When he asked if there was anything wrong with what he submitted, he received no response.
That’s when Norine Dworkin, the editor of the local news outlet VoxPopuli, followed up. On April 24, when it was time for the public to speak at the City Commission meeting, Dworkin asked about the proclamation denial—with Mayor John Rees sitting right in front of her.
She told the commissioners that she had spoken to City Manager John Williams about this issue, but he kept telling her she needed to ask the mayor about it, so here she was.
The response Mayor Rees gave her was unbelievable.
DWORKIN: My question is, Mr. Mayor, what is objectionable about this proclamation?
REES: I think the city manager answered you, and I’ll let it go at that—the response you got.
DWORKIN: If we embrace the Day of Prayer, how is the Day of Reason different?
REES: … Thank you.
DWORKIN: Well, I have one more question that I did not ask the city manager, and I will ask you.
REES: Send it right.
DWORKIN: I did. You don't respond.
REES: No, you know, to be honest with you, I don't read anything you write. I'll tell you that. I think I told you that once before.
DWORKIN: Yes, sir. You did.
REES: I do not read anything you write. I see no point in it. Thank you.
DWORKIN: Well, it's still my obligation and my duty to ask these questions of you, because regardless of whether you read me or not, there's a question here about why—
REES: Your time is up, ma'am.
DWORKIN: No, I don't believe that it is. How is this not seen as the mayor imposing your own religious views on the committee?
REES: I'm not imposing anything.
DWORKIN: You are pushing me to—
REES: We did a resolution, 22-08, that addressed all that. It covered it, and I feel like that covered it. [This was a 2022 resolution that said the city of Winter Garden recognized the value of diversity, equity, and inclusion.]
DWORKIN: Really? The DEI resolution covered it? How is there equity?
REES: End of discussion.
DWORKIN: Okay. End of discussion. Thank you, sir. I do appreciate your comments.
REES: Anyone else? Anyone else? I'm going to say one other thing. Probably shouldn’t, but we've been sitting here for 100, 200 times and been ignored… They get upset. And it's my opinion that a couple of them show no respect for God, no respect for our country, no respect for our flag, no respect for our Pledge of Allegiance, and no respect for the city commission. And I better just say: That's sad… and leave it at that.
Wow. He didn’t even need to say that last bit, but he did anyway, and it was damning.
In summary, Mayor Rees said he wasn’t imposing his religious views on the city because, years ago, he passed a DEI proclamation that he insists liberals should appreciate and that should provide cover for everything else he does. He literally told a constituent he doesn’t read her emails because he doesn’t see a “point” to it. And then he blasted people like Richardson and Dworkin because they don’t show “respect for God” and suggested they’re not real patriots because they criticize the country and Pledge of Allegiance.
In a phone call yesterday, Dworkin responded to one of those comments by saying, “It’s not enough to just pass the DEI bill. You have to act on it.”
Dworkin, I should mention, was remarkably respectful during this diatribe from the immature mayor. She didn’t need to be. When she spoke to the city manager ahead of this meeting, he told her the mayor was rejecting the proclamation because it didn’t “raise awareness about an issue” or “celebrate community events.” That same logic, however, would apply to the Day of Prayer, which the mayor had no problem supporting.
I wondered why she didn’t push harder to point out those hypocrisies. She told me that, as a journalist, she felt her job was to ask tough questions. If Rees wants to be belligerent, then his constituents could see it for themselves.
The question is whether they’ll care. It would be bad enough if a Republican politician said anything like what (the theoretically non-partisan) Rees did, but a mayor has no business dismissing constituents’ sensible requests because he personally finds them annoying or not sufficiently pious. If he didn’t want to issue the proclamation, the least he could do is explain why he’s against it instead of resorting to baseless slander against those pushing for it.
This is par for the course for Rees, though, since he’s taken part in multiple city events that promote Christianity.
That doesn’t mean this fight is over.
Richardson told me in a statement, “Winter Garden is NOT a Christian city. Mayor Rees has failed over and over to be true to his oath of office. Because of this, I call on the mayor to resign immediately.”
Rees is not resigning. But that doesn’t mean people should stop criticizing his irrational, spiteful decisions.
What an arrogant prick the mayor is, to say that “he doesn’t read anything that Mrs. Dworkin writes” because, “he doesn’t see any point in it.” Someone could easily say the same thing about him. The only lack of respect I witnessed above was from the mayor.
It should be pretty obvious why Mayor Rees doesn't want a Day of Reason: he himself is NOT REASONABLE, nor apparently can he be reasoned with. It seems as though he thinks that reason is against his god, much as Martin Luther did. What he utterly ignores is that there are those of faith who value and employ reason in their lives and do not see the conflict that Rees feels.
Yet one more issue which will want some followup, never mind MORE PRESSURE on Rees, because it is clear to me that he doesn't want to hear or see reason.