Local
Dear Editor,
The recent escalation of political violence in Ohio—most notably the alarming incident at the Canfield Fair where an armed individual targeted Dr. Amy Acton and injured volunteers—demands clear and unequivocal condemnation from every corner of our state. Violence, threats, and physical intimidation have zero place in a democratic society. Whether directed at public health leaders like Dr. Amy Acton, political candidates, grassroots organizers, or everyday citizens volunteering at community events, political violence is a direct assault on the fundamental rights of all Ohioans to participate safely in civic life.
When fear replaces reasoned debate and safety is compromised at public gatherings, the core mechanisms of citizen engagement and public discourse are shattered. We cannot allow political violence to become normalized or tolerated under any guise. Regardless of party affiliation or ideological differences, we must hold a shared, uncompromising boundary: disagreements are resolved through dialogue, peaceful assembly, ballot measures, and the legal system—never through force or weapons.
Sunday, September 6, 2026 - 4:00-5:30pm
Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Ave.
The original true meaning of Labor Day -- honoring America’s workers -- will be revived this year, as longtime Columbus musician Bill Cohen leads a concert, singing the praises -- literally -- of all those who make our lives richer by doing their everyday jobs: farmers, truckers, factory workers, teachers, doctors, white collar workers, miners, and more.
This 4th annual labor-themed concert will feature meaningful songs made famous by a wide variety of folks: Woody Guthrie, Sam Cooke, James Taylor, Dolly Parton, Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, Alabama, Leadbelly, and others.
Powerful vocal harmonies will be added by veteran local musicians Phil Hart and Teresa Schleifer.
There will be other highlights too. We’ll recall how, decades ago, labor unions won historic reforms that many of us take for granted today – the 8-hour workday, improved workplace safety, the minimum wage, and an end to child labor. Plus, we’ll hear stories, quips, and wise sayings about the dignity of work and its occasional indignities.
People are walking around in an unreal world—clueless. In the high-stakes arena of Ohio politics, we often see civil rights treated as a set of isolated, transactional commodities. Single-issue advocacy groups grade candidates based on narrow criteria, mainstream campaigns calibrate their rhetoric to avoid controversy, and party leaders instruct their base to silence uncomfortable truths.
The ongoing saga surrounding gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton—whose scorecard with Equality Ohio was dropped from an "A" to "Pending" after her anti-trans remarks before being adjusted to a "B"—exposes a fundamental flaw in how civil liberties are defended in the Buckeye State. When party leaders and campaign strategists treat transgender rights, immigrant protections, and general constitutional liberties as negotiable line items, we miss the larger, interconnected threat.
The reality is simple: we cannot protect the constitutional rights of any Ohioan without simultaneously defending the rights of trans individuals, immigrants, and every targeted group.
Saturday Sept 5th, from 1:30-3pm
Columus Main Library, room 2B, 96 S Grant Ave.
Curious about Unionizing? Want to organize your workplace? Don’t know how to get started?
Join our Workplace Organizing 101 training this Saturday Sept 5th, from 1:30-3pm. It will take place at the Main Library, room 2B (96 S Grant Ave). Come out to a fun and informative educational session, to learn the first steps in organizing your workplace, taught by union organizers, union members and DSA members. Snacks & light refreshments provided.
American Doctor offers a devastating look at the war in Gaza through the eyes of three physicians who’ve served there. Sharing their experiences is important to them—but only if they’re shared fully and honestly, one of them insists early on.
North Carolina-based surgeon Mark Perlmutter is attempting to show an image of children who’ve been mortally wounded in the conflict. “This is what my tax dollars did,” he tells director Poh Si Teng, referring to the U.S.’s support for the Israeli military.
Teng tells him the graphic image may need to be blurred to preserve the children’s dignity, but Perlmutter says doing so would amount to “journalistic malpractice.” The image is shown as is.
Perlmutter, a Jewish American, has been a passionate opponent of Israel’s devastating war on Gaza, which it launched in response to Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack. In fact, Perlmutter’s passion reportedly was what inspired Teng to quit her job and take on the task of bringing the Gazan conflict home to America.
Phase One of “Zone In” threatens Columbus’s most popular corridors with density housing. Essentially, this means taller buildings crammed with overpriced tiny apartments, and with minimum to no parking spaces required.
Now comes the rollout of Zone In’s “Phase Two” and one of the area’s iconic green spaces, the picturesque Walhalla Ravine, could someday be targeted with the same brutalist-looking density.
Phase One only covered 5 percent of the city, while Phase Two covers 43 percent of the city’s parcels, affecting approximately 66,000 properties. The city for the next several weeks is seeking feedback for Phase 2 and City Council will then vote to approve soon after.
If anyone has something to say about the conservation of Walhalla Ravine – because City Hall scoffs at most humans who have concerns about Zone In – it should be the celebrity kitty that is “Wanderin Joe the Ravine Cat.”
Dr. Bob Fitrakis and Dan-o Dougan honor local women musicians, all who played either Stache's or Little Brothers, such as Shaun Booker, Megan Palmer, Linda Loveless, Jeanette Williams, Donns Mogavero, and many more!
Listen live at 11pm Fridays, September 4 and 11, and Mondays, September 7 and 14 at 10am streaming at wgrn.org or on the radio at 91.9FM
and
Mondays at 2pm streaming September 7 and 14 at wcrsfm.org or on the radio at 92.7 or 98.3FM.
Yesterday, Newsweek revealed that ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility is sitting on 148 open misconduct allegations filed between fiscal years 2023–2025, including sexual assault, bribery, drug smuggling, domestic violence, and intentional service weapon discharges. This data does not include abuses by Border Patrol agents, overseen by a separate Office of Professional Responsibility.
“This is outrageous,” said Lynn Tramonte, Executive Director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance and the author of the August 2026 report, “The Worst of the Worst: 152 Sexually and Physically Abusive ICE and Border Agents.”
Last Saturday, August 29, 2026, the 4th district of the illustrious Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. held its annual undergraduate workshop at the Ohio State University’s African American and African Studies Community Extension Center. The Center is located at 905 Mount Vernon Avenue on the city’s near eastside in the historic neighborhood of Bronzeville, a name appropriated from Black influentials in Chicago where Bronzeville first originated in the 1930s.
Said workshop was comprised of training, break-out sessions, reports and Powerpoint presentations. This year’s undergraduate workshop was historic in that it featured young Brandon Moore and his brother Braxton Moore, two 23-year-old twins who hold the offices of 2nd vice district representative for the 4th district (consisting of Ohio and West Virginia) and 2nd vice grand basileus for the entire fraternity, respectively.