WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — A frequent speaker at the Waterloo City Council meetings got steamed when the mayor asked him to take off his hat. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that Mayor Quentin Hart halted Tuesday’s meeting after exchanging words with Dwayne Eilers. Eilers has been attending council meetings to complain that he’s being singled out by code enforcement officers while other people with similar property violations are not receiving citations. Eilers has taken off his hat at previous meetings in accordance with the mayor’s desire for public decorum. But Eilers objected to the rule Tuesday.

Eilers told the mayor: “I refuse to remove my hat because I have the right to be my own person, not the person you want me to be.” Said the mayor: “Please remove your hat, Mr. Eilers. We’re not going to be a spectacle tonight.” Hart recessed the meeting, and Eilers left before police officers could escort him from the building.