CRANSTON -- A dozen vibrating rubber duckies, provided by a California sex-toy manufacturer, briefly joined the eclectic holiday display outside City Hall yesterday afternoon.
Within an hour of their arrival, Mayor Stephen P. Laffey's staff plucked the yellow ducks, saying the exhibition was already full.
The toys were placed by Scott Bonelli, who last week added 15 pink flamingos wearing Santa hats to the display, which now includes a Nativity scene, a menorah and several secular items.
Many of the flamingos have since been stolen, and Bonelli keeps replacing them only to find the birds missing again.
The owner of the California company -- which lists Bonelli as a local retailer -- gave him a dozen ducks to set out.
"As far as I'm concerned, they're waterfowl," Bonelli said. "Since I'm missing flamingos, I'm merely replacing them -- like Jesus was missing, now Jesus is back . . . frankly, I'm running out of flamingos."
The baby Jesus figure was stolen from the Nativity scene Thursday night, but was later recovered by police officers who discovered it while responding to a fight on Arcadia Avenue.
Laffey's office did not see things the same way as Bonelli.
On Monday morning, Laffey closed the exhibition to new items, saying the best spots were taken and the lawn was getting cluttered.
(He did say exceptions might be made. For instance, the mayor said he wanted a display for Kwanzaa, an African-American cultural festival.)
Laffey's director of administration, Robin Muksian-Schutt, ordered the ducks removed yesterday. She said they were not removed because of their adult nature.
The mayor invited residents this month to contribute to the holiday display. Before items were placed on the lawn, the mayor or his designee needed to approve them. (The Rhode Island affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit Monday saying that having a Nativity scene and a menorah in front of "the seat of government" is unconstitutional.)
Bonelli took issue with Laffey's policy, saying the mayor should not be "the final arbiter of good taste."
"I'm not mocking religion," he said. "I'm mocking the . . . process of the government. It's silly. It's totally silly."
When told of the city's decision to remove his ducks, Bonelli said, "I don't necessarily agree with it, but no harm, no fowl."
