Local
Thursday, February 19, 2026, 6:30 – 8:00 PM. 19
Central Ohio Worker Center will share a basic training on your 4th amendment rights as well as canvassing/outreach tactics for businesses. We can work to make a plan to reach out to as many businesses as possible, provide some resources for them, and offer additional trainings.
More information and registration for the online training here.
Columbus is rich in wonderful immigrant owned and run shops. Let's do what we can to ensure they have the resources and support they need to keep themselves, their workers, and their customers safe.
We'll share a basic training on your 4th amendment rights as well as canvassing/outreach tactics for businesses. We can work to make a plan to reach out to as many businesses as possible, provide some resources to them, and offer additional trainings.
We hope that everyone will leave with knowledge and practice of 4th amendment rights, including:
Check out more activist events here
Wednesday, February 18, 2026, noon
First Congregational Church ( E. Broad next to Art Museum)
On Ash Wednesday Clergy and people of Faith will meet at First Congregational Church ( E. Broad next to Art Museum) at noon to join in their Service of Ashes. After worship our group will gather at the Social Justice wall. From there we will cross Broad street to vigil at the ICE office for an hour. This will be a peaceful non violent vigil.
Please bring your stole and collar if you can and any appropriate signage. There will be no civil disobedience just a request for repentance and humane action towards our immigrants.
All people of faith are welcome.
Collective iftar is the name for the evening meal that Muslims break their fast with after sunset every day during the month of Ramadan. This year, the first day of Ramadan will fall on Wednesday, February 18.
Joy McCorriston, who is a professor of anthropology at OSU, was the first person in Central Ohio to organize a collective iftar for the local Muslim community. That was right after the 9/11 terror attack and her Church St. James Episcopal Church of Columbus has been hosting such an event every year since then.
Professor McCorriston, who speaks Arabic, has also lived and worked as a consultant in Oman, Syria, and Yemen. In a personal note, years later, her firstborn son has attended the same high school with my youngest son and became good friends ever since.
A longtime historian from Pickaway County revealed to the Free Press what many had surmised. That the archeological survey conducted at the future site of Arsenal-1 was completed by amateurs hired by Anduril’s construction company.
Arsenal-1 is the name of Anduril’s 5-million square foot autonomous killer flying robot manufacturing plant which will become the largest single-site job creation investment in Ohio history.
Building Arsenal-1 is CT Realty, and they hired Columbus-based Lawhon & Associates, an environmental and engineering consulting firm, to complete the archeological survey, which is mandated by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 due to the project’s use of federal funds and evidence of Native American occupancy at the site.
“They did a survey based on what they interpreted the state standards to require. But the way it went down is iffy,” said the Pickaway County historian who refused to offer his name for publication. “For example, they did the visual inspection in the summer in three-to-four feet tall soybeans. Kind of hard to see artifacts in those conditions.”
SB 87 is legislation currently moving through the Ohio Senate that raises serious concerns for free speech, civil liberties, and constitutional protections.
This bill would incorporate the IHRA definition of antisemitism into Ohio law and attach it to the state’s ethnic intimidation statute. Legal experts and civil rights advocates have warned that doing so risks conflating political speech with discriminatory intent and could create a chilling effect on protest, academic discussion, journalism, and advocacy.
Ohio already has strong laws addressing hate crimes, discrimination, and religious protections. SB 87 does not fill a legal gap. Instead, it introduces vague language that could invite selective enforcement and viewpoint-based scrutiny of political expression.
Thousands of Ohioans have already expressed concern, and we are hearing daily from individuals and organizations seeking ways to help.
We need broad, statewide support to ensure lawmakers understand the constitutional, legal, and community impact of this legislation.
How your organization can help
1. Contact lawmakers
Monday, February 16, 2026, 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM and 6:00 PM - Late
Natalie’s Grandview, 945 King Ave., Grandview
Come listen to great music and support an excellent cause at Natalie’s Grandview.
On Monday, February 16th, they will be hosting an all-day fundraiser, with 100% of proceeds donated to Corazón Deshilado, CRIS, and Our Helpers — organizations doing vital work to support our immigrant neighbors. We hope you’ll join us for a day rooted in community and a celebration of South American culture. It’s been incredibly inspiring to see so many small businesses stand together, standing up against hate and responding with love. Huge shout-out to all the coffee shops, bars, and musicians pouring their time, tips, and energy into this cause. We’re staying loud out here!
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During the February 8, 2025 Columbus Free Press salon, we declared “We are United with Springfield.” (Link to salon video)
On February 2, 2026, over 1000 people of faith and conscience gathered in solidarity with the Springfield Haitian community. The US government had set February 3, 2026 as the date to end Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for nearly 400,000 Haitians.
The US formalized immigration system since the 1920’s has a primary goal of excluding people, which does not support the current immigratory patterns driven by foreign policy, economic strangulation, and capital transfers. The push and pull character of immigration is profound on families taking this journey. However, Donald J. Trump’s regime seeks to politicize the migrant, and has not worked toward correcting this anachronistic system.
The February Free Press Second Saturday Salon held on February 14 by Zoom was hosted by Free Press Board member Mark Stansbery and featured a talk and Powerpoint by local activist Tom Dillard.
Tom Dillard presented a historical overview of two major civil rights movements in Columbus: the Vanguard League and Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). He shared personal stories and experiences from his family's involvement in the Vanguard League, which was founded in 1940 to address discrimination in public accommodations, employment, housing, and education. Dillard highlighted key moments in the organization's history, including protests against segregation in theaters and housing restrictions, and emphasized the ongoing relevance of their work today.
See all today's activist events here
Momentum Builds to Stop Radioactive Brine Spreading on Ohio Roads as Monday (2/17) Hearing Deadline Looms
WHO: Buckeye Environmental Network, the Ohio Farmers Union, state legislators including State Sens. Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo) and Kent Smith (D-Euclid)
WHAT: A call for public testimony on SB 329, a bill designed to ban the practice of spreading radioactive oil and gas waste (brine) on local Ohio roads.
WHEN: The hearing will take place Tuesday, February 17, 2026, at 3:00 PM
WHERE: Ohio Statehouse- 1 Capitol Square, Columbus, Ohio - Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, North Hearing Room
The Public Testimony Portal is open now, and will close Monday afternoon, February 16th:
Columbus Mayor Andy Ginther and Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin, who both lack any kind original policy proposals while only handing out socially and economically counterproductive tax abatements for new housing, have once again co-opted a few more of my proposals.
Much as recently been made of Ginther and Hardin's $500 million Affordable Housing bond package and how they intend on allocating those funds.
On February 11, 2026, The Columbus Dispatch reported that "Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther's plans to spend $500 million in affordable housing bonds voters OK'd in November on unprecedented city land acquisition and the homeless shelter system, along with continuing to invest in affordable apartment construction."