Jesse Watters: Massachusetts residents call out Christmas controversy
Jesse Watters profiles the Dedham, Massachusetts, meeting following uproar over lack of a Christmas tree in a branch of the town's library on 'Jesse Watters Primetime.'
Residents of Dedham, Massachusetts, slammed their town leadership after the Endicott Branch library initially failed to post its annual Christmas tree — a move that was reversed following public outcry.
On "Jesse Watters Primetime," host Jesse Watters highlighted the Tuesday meeting at the town hall several miles southwest of Boston, days after he and his program had brought national attention to the controversy.
"For two weeks now, the ‘Primetime’ team has been fighting a war on Christmas happening in the tiny town of Dedham, Massachusetts. It started when a persnickety librarian banned Christmas trees in the libraries because they made people feel uncomfortable, and the good news is, ‘Primetime’ intervened, and now the trees are back," he said in summary.
Watters noted that after the library announced it would return the tree to its post, still-fuming town residents gave officials an earful at a public meeting.
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The spat on social media amid local residents over a Christmas tree drew official condemnation from the government of Dedham, Massachusetts. (Anastasiia Krivenok via Getty Images)
One woman spoke out about how all members of the Dedham community deserve to have their beliefs represented.
She commented that a "Christmas tree is a symbol of Christianity," but was drowned out by crosstalk for much of her remarks.
"Why do you hate Christians so much?" another resident posed to the assembled officials.
Another woman called out the library for trying to politicize the community in a way that drew more than local attention.
"This is not about a Christmas tree," she said. "This is about you trying to lead the town into being woke."
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Jesse Watters appears on Fox News. (Fox News)
"These people now are watching you. They're not going to put up with it anymore," the woman added, appearing to refer to like-minded residents in the gallery.
A Jewish resident also spoke, appearing to choke up at one point when he remarked that the Christian holiday is a "time of peace" for him.
Another man later claimed officials were exposing their biases through the initial non-installation of the tree, but were at the same time hoping that would go unnoticed.
"Thankfully, [library branch manager Lisa] Desmond said something," he said. "Thankfully, Turtle Boy picked up the story. Thankfully, Jesse Watters picked up the story. The local media — everybody picked up the story."
"And now you're just sitting in the pile of poop that you made for yourself."
The Endicott branch library in Dedham, Mass. (Fox News/Jesse Watters Primetime)
Later, another resident spoke, saying that if he had small children, he would move away because of the controversy.
"None of you had the courage to stand up and do what was right," the man fumed. "You embarrassed us all over a tree."
In a statement provided Monday to Fox News Digital, the library's director called the initial decision not to display a Christmas tree the result of an "ongoing review of all our holiday decorations and displays that started back in the spring."
"What has played out on social media is unfortunate, it has negatively impacted our staff and the community, and frankly, transpired before we had even started our seasonal decorating," the director continued, confirming the trees would now go up.
Fox News' Emma Colton contributed to this report.