Feature
As the winter emerges
It fixes me with a piercing stare
My tears sparkle,still
I take a walk in the cold
Mist wraps me up like a robe
Nature's severity lessens my inner shock
Daisies, Lilies, Roses adorning the yards
Charm me and I am taken up, but
Your ignorance hurts me as the cold approaches
Like winter trees you are brutal and stand bare
Drop my love like leaves to survive yourself.
(The poet lives in Ohio, USA; She can be reached arubabz@gmail.com)
Shop local, shop independent, shop small business, and shop for social justice!
To be a responsible consumer during a stressful holiday season, you can support your own community by shopping at real stores instead of national websites, and keep the individuals and artists making a living selling their own products or owning neighborhood stores. Here are some gift ideas for discerning progressive Free Press readers:
ACTIVIST gifts
For friends or family members who frequent street rallies, consider giving a bullhorn. A good, sturdy megaphone with a strong audio range is a boon for chanting and giving speeches outdoors. For your activist friends who give occasional educational presentations using a computer at a meeting or conference, a pocket video projector is a thoughtful gift. Some are no bigger than a smartphone. You can find bullhorns and projectors at local office supply store – and don’t forget while you’re there to add in some thick black markers and colorful poster board for sign-making and some clipboards and pens for petitioning.
There are those who believe that African American women have “come a long way baby” in regards to the world of movies and television. It appears that they have evolved from being just maids and cooks on film. They no longer are seen standing quietly with their heads bowed down, eyes looking downwards at the ground, never giving eye contact to their white co-actors.
In 1939 Hattie McDaniel was the first African American woman to win an Academy Award for “Best Supporting Actress” in Gone with the Wind. The story takes place in the South during the era of the end of slavery and, of course, Hattie played the devoted Black maid who would never leave her mistress. What do people most remember about the Black women in Gone with the Wind? The high squeaky voice of Butterfly McQueen claiming “I don’t know nothing ‘bout birthin' babies!”
The Free Press celerated 45 years with over 100 supporters on October 19 at the Florentine Restaurant. Six local activists were honored at the dinner in a lively ceremony emceed by Editor Bob Fitrakis filled with positive messages about effective organizing and activism in Ohio.
The Free Press is now “Ohio’s oldest locally-owned news source,” since the Wolfe family recently sold the Columbus Dispatch. This October marks our 45th anniversary, and the paper has re-shaped political debate in Ohio’s capitol city since 1970.
Buy tickets: http://bit.ly/1g5qVWX
Monday, October 19, 2015
5:30-9pm
Florentine Restaurant
907 W Broad St, Columbus, OH 43222
Free parking
Come in west side back door to party room area (ground floor)
Handicap accessible
$15 per person, $25 couple, $10 or negotiable, low income
Buffet dinner and awards ceremony
Vegetarian options
Honoring with the Free Press "Libby" Award for Lifetime Achievement in Community Activism:
Chuck Lynd
Julie Weatherington-Rice
Pranav Jani
Kenny Schweickart
DSCO Debs-Thomas-Harrington Award winner:
Fadhel Kaboub
Bill Moss Award for Outstanding African American Activist winner:
Torin Jacobs
Contact: 614-253-2571 or colsfreepress@gmail.com
Sun, Sept 27, “High Noon ’til 10pm,” Browning Amphitheater and South Oval at Ohio State University
Purpose: To educate the public on the myriad of potential benefits offered by the Cannabis plant, including the medicinal, industrial, agricultural, economic, environmental, and other benefits and applications. In particular, Ohio Hempfest seeks to advance the cause of Cannabis policy reform through education while advancing the public image of the Cannabis advocate or enthusiast through example.
Sun, Sept 27, “High Noon ’til 10pm,” Browning Amphitheater and South Oval at Ohio State University
Purpose: To educate the public on the myriad of potential benefits offered by the Cannabis plant, including the medicinal, industrial, agricultural, economic, environmental, and other benefits and applications. In particular, Ohio Hempfest seeks to advance the cause of Cannabis policy reform through education while advancing the public image of the Cannabis advocate or enthusiast through example.
Sun, Sept 27, “High Noon ’til 10pm,” Browning Amphitheater and South Oval at Ohio State University
Purpose: To educate the public on the myriad of potential benefits offered by the Cannabis plant, including the medicinal, industrial, agricultural, economic, environmental, and other benefits and applications. In particular, Ohio Hempfest seeks to advance the cause of Cannabis policy reform through education while advancing the public image of the Cannabis advocate or enthusiast through example.
39th HOT TIMES COMMUNITY ARTS & MUSIC FESTIVAL,
Sept 11, 12, 13, 2015
240 Parsons Avenue, (Main & Parsons)
Hours:
Fri – 5PM - midnight
Sat – Noon - Midnight
Sunday – 11AM - 8PM
3 Stages - The Main Street, Parsons Avenue and Porch Swing Stages
The Hot Times Annual Art Car Show is the largest gathering of Art Cars in Ohio
Great vendors line the Loop Road creating a lively Street Fair
Fabulous Food!
Whole line up at www.hottimesfestival.com
Each year the Columbus Black Theatre Festival deals with topics that pertain not only to the African American community but society at large and this year is no different. The first year of the festival dealt with family themes by playwright Sanika Harris, Tisha Harris and Nanette Hodge. The second year added the struggles of Black business owners and the injustices of African American people with plays by Stefanie Moss, Carol Williams, Tasha Neal and Jasmine Green. The founder of the festival, Julie Whitney Scott, ends each festival on the last day with one of her original plays; 2013 “Secrets of a Dark Skin Sister” which has been accepted in the Silent River Screenplay Competition this year, and in 2014 “The Woes of a Black Race” that dealt with the Zimmerman verdict.