Local
State Rep. Christine Cockley (D-Columbus) will be hosting a Prevent, Listen, Act, Navigate (P.L.A.N.) town hall with several other state legislators Tuesday, August 19th at 9:15am at the Hilltop Branch of the Columbus Metropolitan Library. This event engages community members in a conversation about gun violence, firearm safety, survivor support, and legislative actions.
Also planning to attend are State Rep. Munira Abdullahi (D-Columbus), State Rep. Dontavius L. Jarrells (D-Columbus), and State Senator Bill DeMora (D-Columbus).
The P.L.A.N. Ohio initiative aims to:
Prevent gun violence through education and firearm safety.Listen to what the community needs when it comes to life-saving trauma response techniques.Act through advocacy and civic engagement; andNavigate resources for mental health, youth programming, and victim support.House Democrats are hosting P.L.A.N. Ohio events across Ohio to help spread awareness about gun violence, provide resources for constituents, and create safer communities for all Ohioans.
P.L.A.N. Ohio events are free and open to the public.
SB 153 proposes to do the following:
Changes to the registration process
Requires “documentary proof of citizenship” to be presented in order to register to vote or update your voter registration.Eliminates the use of voter registration forms, prohibits registering through QR codes at local events or drives, and ends online voter registration.Requires Ohioans to register or update their registration by going to the Board of Elections and bringing required proof of citizenship. Most people do not carry the required forms of identification when they go to the BMV to renew their license.Changes that could trigger provisional voting
Senate Bill 153 requires your ID to match your voter information exactly, and forces you to vote provisionally if any of the following applies:
Sunday, August 10, 1-5pm
Worthington Village Green, corner of S.R. 161 and High St., Worthington, Ohio
Join us for our community’s favorite celebration of summer and save the date for Sunday, August 10 for our End of Summer Fair! This year, we’re joining forces with our friends at Worthington Interfaith Neighbors [WIN] to include their annual Festival of Faiths and Nations event!
We’ll have carnival games, two great live bands, live entertainment, delicious food specials at our local restaurants, shopping specials, treats, and more treats. It will be a great activity for the whole family — right before the kiddos head back to school!
Our DORA [Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area] is every day, which means that you can get a beverage “to go” and enjoy the shops and the neighborhood.
Hosted by The Worthington Partnership and Worthington Interfaith Neighbors [WIN].
Join us for a variety of community conversations at this in-person Free Press Second Saturday Salon
Saturday, August 9 from 6:30-9pm
at Lynn Stan's house
952 Bryden Rd.
Potluck dishes welcome!
We'll talk about upcoming elections, local festivals, immigration solidarity and more!
Co-hosted by Simply Living.
This article first appeared in the Buckeye Flame
Ohio Democrats have introduced two bills in both the state Senate and House of Representatives that would ban conversion therapy on minors, the universally discredited practice attempting to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
Neither bill has been given a single hearing in the Republican-controlled Statehouse, and there isn’t a clear path to advance the legislation there.
Meanwhile, miles away from Columbus, LGBTQ+ activist Brandon West is working with local officials to ban conversion therapy on minors in his corner of Northeast Ohio.
West successfully pushed Lorain City Council in September 2024 to pass an ordinance that banned conversion therapy on minors. Now, he is working with Cuyahoga County officials to get a similar ordinance approved at the county level. West also has his sights set on Summit County and the city of Vermillion, he said.
What: The Farce. The Fix. The Force. The * …
You support legalizing marijuana, aka cannabis, in Ohio. In fact, you have followed this issue for years. A few citizens you knew were putting the subject on the ballot. You signed their petition, confident that you understood its contents. Sufficient signatures and plentiful petitions placed the issue on the statewide ballot in November 2023 as Issue 2. You made sure your voter registration was current so you could participate in the early vote. After election day, you woke up happily to find that over 2 million other Ohioans voted just like you. Ohio legalized adult use cannabis. The new law went into effect on December 7. And Ohioans lived happily ever after … or not. You recently learned that Ohio legislators are trying to gut the new law. Your reaction? WTF!
WHAT: THE FRAMEWORK
Earlier this year when Kaufman Development sold one of its “Gravity” apartment buildings in Franklinton, it was another canary-in-the-coal mine moment for a West Side activist. Just a month prior, the Columbus-based developer had sold the nearby Idea Foundry and Gravity Park Experience, which is best described as a playground for adults with its pickle ball courts.
“They are cheap-ass apartments from what we’ve seen at Gravity,” says Rebecca Hunley, a Franklinton homeowner and also the current chair of the Franklinton Area Neighbors Civic Association, an organization she founded. “Yet I don’t see anything telling me, or anybody from our neighborhood, we can move in. I have never paid a mortgage like what they are asking for rent. Gravity, the great flop that it is. It’s a failure.”
Sign up for the Saturday, August 9, 2025, 2:00 – 3:30 PM Hands Along High Street event
Join the final big resistance event of the summer before the beginning of the new school year!
With your participation, we will form a human chain of resistance 8 miles long on the public sidewalk along the west side of High Street from Route 161 in Worthington to downtown Columbus, delivering the message that WE STAND UNITED in defense of fundamental American values and against the corruption and tyranny of the Trump administration.
Wednesday, August 6, 2025, 6:00 PM
University Baptist Church, 50 W. Lane Ave., Columbus 43201
Featuring Rocco Di Pietro, Composer and Concert Organizer. The event is in support of the Columbus Campaign for Arms Control annual commemoration of Hiroshima/Nagasaki Bombings.
Contact Mark D. Stansbery, 614-252-9255, walk@igc.org.
Oregon Passes Landmark Microgrid Legislation
There are currently no community-owned or operated microgrids in Oregon. Two new laws recently passed are designed to make it possible for communities to plan, build, and own local microgrids and connect them to the larger utility system. This development is unique in the nation, as most microgrids are owned by utilities, governments, or private businesses.