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The South Side of Columbus – often forgotten and maligned by the rest of Central Ohio – could someday be transformed by two massive mixed-use developments with their developers seeking greater density (building higher) with little to no parking. One at the Great Southern Shopping Center, after it is bulldozed, and the other across South High St. from “The Fort,” which is near the State Route 104 on-ramps and a few miles from German Village.

Veterans of all ages and their supporters lined the sidewalk from State to Broad Street in front of the Ohio Statehouse protesting the proposed Trump administration cuts to federal Veterans Administration (VA) jobs.

The Columbus demonstration answered a call for veterans' protests at capitol cities fSandy Bolzenius, a veteran at the protest, estimated there were at least 350 people in attendance.or Friday, March 14 at noon across the country demanding Congress stop the proposed cuts of 80,000 VA jobs would affect benefits many depend upon. 

Protester signs expressed anti-fascism, anti-Trump and anti-Elon Musk sentiment as well as defending the Constitution and hands off veteran's benefits. Members of Veterans for Peace held banners for their organization. Sandy Bolzenius, a veteran at the protest, estimated there were at least 350 people in attendance.

Approximately 100 students and community members gathered outside OSU Hillel Wednesday, March 5 in protest of former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who was set to speak to students and members of the hillel community. The demonstration was part of a growing wave of opposition against Bennett’s U.S. university tour, which has faced backlash at multiple campuses. Just a day prior, more than 200 students at Columbia University protested his appearance.Then a day after the OSU protest, over 100 protested his appearance at the Harvard Business School on March 6, 2025. Naftali Bennett is currently on a U.S. university tour, organized by Hillel International’s Teach-In Tour 2025, in an effort to shape narratives about Israel and its policies amid growing student activism. His presence on college campuses comes at a time when student movements are increasingly challenging Israeli state policies and advocating for Palestinian rights.

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Tuesday, March 4, 3pm Ohio Statehouse rally with speakers including local farmer and council member Christopher Gibbs, fired federal worker Wesley Stanovsek, as well as Ohio House representative Michele Grim. Making our voices heard and refusing the anti-democrati, and illegal actions of the Trump administration and those who follow. Trump is systematically purging everyone from the federal government that is not loyal to him above anyone else, including the American people and the constitution that he swore to uphold. The lives of every minority in this country are being threatened. We call for the legislators, and leaders of our nation to stand with us in these dire times.

The tension in the room was palpable. A majority-minority crowd of Ohio State students, faculty, and staff packed the meeting space, faces tight with frustration, hands ready to clap in defiance. As President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr. confirmed the news—the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) and the Center for Belonging and Social Change (CBSC) were being shut down—the response was immediate.

Students jeered. Faculty members sharpened their words like weapons. The air crackled with a mixture of anger, disbelief, and determination.

Carter attempted to soften the blow, offering reassurances that Ohio State was still a place for all. The room erupted into laughter. The Students and Faculty knew exactly what was happening: a university caving under pressure, preemptively complying with laws that weren’t even in effect yet.

The meeting, which was intended to be a structured update, quickly became a battleground; and when Carter tried to shut it down early, the students and faculty refused to let it go.

An “important breakthrough” in Alzheimer’s disease treatment may soon be forthcoming. Local doctor Gerard Nuovo, MD recently published a study revealing encouraging results using an existing drug and mice.

An estimated seven million people in the US suffer from Alzheimer's disease. Although some treatments are available, they are expensive, may slow the disease down a bit, but offer no cure. Some have potentially negative side effects. 

The study is considered “pre-clinical” because drugs must be tested in animals before they can be tested in people. Surprisingly, mouse models of Alzheimer's disease are extensively used in research. They are valuable because the mouse brain has the actual human gene that can cause Alzheimer's disease. 

In human Alzheimer's disease, certain proteins called “BCL2 family proteins” concentrate in the damaged neurons. A mouse model of the disease involves giving mice the human gene that causes Alzheimer’s then administering a drug to block the BCL2 protein.

This article first appeared on the Buckeye Flame.

Ohio Senate Minority Leader and out lesbian Sen. Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood) has re-introduced the Ohio Fairness Act for the 12th time, despite waning support among Republican lawmakers.

The Fairness Act – which would extend equal civil rights protections to LGBTQ+ Ohioans – was formerly a bipartisan bill. 

However, Antonio said the Trump administration’s focus on anti-transgender policy and rhetoric has helped set an increasingly anti-LGBTQ+ precedent at the Ohio Statehouse.

“We should already have equal rights in the state of Ohio, so it’s important to introduce legislation that calls for that,” Antonio said. “People from the LGBTQ+ community should already receive equal treatment under the law – and that means in employment, in housing and when traversing the public sphere.”

Over the span of 24 hours in Ohio, Senate Bill 1 had a marathon eight and a half hour opposition hearing with 800+ opponents, was voted out of committee less than 12 hours later, and then passed in the Ohio Senate hours later. At every iteration of SB 1, the Ohio Student Association has tirelessly fought the bill existentially threatening our cherished campuses.

Save Ohio Parks and 29 environmental and advocacy organizations from across the state have delivered a letter to Gov. Mike DeWine demanding a moratorium on new or pending nominations, bids and leases to frack under Ohio’s beloved and pristine state parks and public lands.

“The Oil and Gas Land Management Commission has never discussed in a public meeting nine criteria it is mandated by statute to considered in deciding whether to frack Ohio’s state parks, wildlife areas and other public lands,” said Cathy Cowan Becker, president of the board at Save Ohio Parks. “An explosion last month at Gulfport well pad just five miles from Salt Fork State Park demonstrates how dangerous this industry can be. Public records show an average of 250 reported gas and oil accidents per year since 2015- one every 1.5 days.”

Save Ohio Parks is a statewide 501c(4) organization dedicated to educating the public about fracking under state parks and public lands. A lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a 2023 law requiring fracking under Ohio public lands has not yet been decided.

A  at the Ohio Statehouse to protest Project 2025 and fascism, followed by a March to Senator Moreno's office, then a March back to in front of the Statehouse on February 5, 2025.