Local
The ballot for this coming November 7 may offer another monumental chance for progressive voters in Columbus to take needed action – and this in case, to ensure legal and safe access to abortion. This week the Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights and Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom announced they are joining together to place a citizen-initiated constitutional amendment on November’s 2023 statewide general election ballot.
The jointly drafted amendment will be similar to a constitutional amendment approved by Michigan voters last November.
A distinction between the two is the Ohio Physician for Reproductive Rights is mostly backed by 1,400 doctors and healthcare professionals while Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom is a coalition of statewide reproductive rights and justice organizations such as the ACLU of Ohio, Abortion Fund of Ohio, New Voices for Reproductive Justice, Ohio Women’s Alliance, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio.
Saturday, Feb. 18, 7-11pm
Old First Presbyterian Church, 1101 Bryden Rd.
$5 requested donation
All ages community mixer with live jazz and poetry, snacks, treats, fun games, contests, lively conversation.
February 15, Desiree Tims, President and CEO of Innovation Ohio, condemned House Joint Resolution 1 (HJR1), a proposed constitutional amendment that increases the passage thresholds of new amendments to 60% of the vote, up from a simple majority.
“HJR1 is a blatant power-grab by special interests and corrupt politicians, which seeks to undermine our democracy and silence the voice of the people,” said Tims. “This amendment shreds our costitution as we know it and is a direct attack on the rights of Ohio voters. We condemn it in the strongest terms possible.”
A similar proposal from the last General Assembly, HJR6, failed to receive enough support in the Ohio legislature and eventually died in lame duck session. HJR1, however, contains more limits to citizen-driven ballot initiatives and creates unnecessary burdens to signature gatherers.
The mayor’s, city council’s, and Columbus Police Department’s chiefs’ uninformed, misleading commentaries and mismanagement of public safety would be comic if they were not often deadly.
Much is captured in two current events: the legally irrelevant and self-promotional devotion to what I renamed Colemanville (formerly downtown Columbus) in city council’s passing on Feb. 6, 2023 a resolution that has neither merit nor authority, setting a speed limit of 25 mph in the small, ragged downtown area. (See Graff, “Columbus searches for its Downtown with historical, urbanist, and developers’ blinders,” Busting Myths, Columbus Free Press, Dec. 22, 2021; “Still searching for Downtown: ‘Ideas considered for Downtown plan,’” Busting Myths, Columbus Free Press, Aug. 14, 2022)
Thursday, February 16, 7-10pm, Club Diversity, 863 S. High St.
Join us for our DSA happy hour! We will be meeting on the third Thursday of each month at 7pm at Club Diversity at 863 S. High St. This will be an informal get together to meet, hang out, talk shop, and enjoy the camaraderie! Non-members are welcome to join and learn more about the chapter.
Nothing stinks worse than a cover-up that’s been exposed, but then again, Norfolk Southern is donating to each resident of East Palestine a $5 bill for their troubles.
“They’ve offered the town $25,000, or $5/person. The railroad is worth $55 BILLION,” Tweeted Nina Turner former national co-chair of the Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign.
That’s just for their immediate challenges, like being forced to run for their lives. But what about any long-term issues for residents? Or anyone else, for that matter, who may become exposed to the vinyl chloride spilling into the Ohio River.
Wednesday, February 15, 6-7:30pm, Huntington Empowerment Center, 780 Mount Vernon Ave.
Join fellow community members for this important discussion and action plan on how we are focusing on introducing a non-police emergency response program to Columbus!
There will be a panel discussion, discussion of the Columbus Safety Collective budget, and strategy updates, followed by a “question-and-answer” period. Food will be catered by Willowbeez SoulVeg.
Visit this link to register today: tinyurl.com/Feb15CSCPublicSafetyForum.
Learn more about Columbus Safety Collective here.
RSVP for this event by using this link.
Hosted by Columbus Safety Collective and ACLU of Ohio.
Former Columbus City Council candidate and long-time community advocate Joe Motil’s Declaration of Candidacy petitions for Mayor of Columbus were certified this afternoon by the Franklin County Board of Elections. Mr. Motil and current Mayor Andrew Ginther will face off in the November 7,2023 General Election.
As a community leader and advocate for fairness, opportunity, equality, and justice, Mr. Motil has been involved with city government for 37 years in numerous capacities. His advocacy and commitment is well known and respected throughout Columbus’ neighborhoods. He is recognized especially for his fights against the city’s tax abatement policies, proposing solutions for truly affordable housing, advocating for the unsheltered, exposing corruption and the unethical conduct of city officials, police reform, and advancing the rights for all Columbus citizens voices to be heard.
On Sunday, February 5 at about 4pm, I get a phone call from a friend who has access to police scanners and phone calls. He tells me there’s been an officer-involved shooting and have I heard anything about it?
A few minutes before hand, I’d mostly ignored a Facebook Live feed an organizer friend of mine had started regarding the same incident: it wasn’t that I dismissed this organizer’s work; it was that, ten years into my own work, I have come to realize that personalizing every tragedy in this city wears on a person’s mental health and physical well-being. I’m in my early 40s. Too many of my friends and comrades have either taken their own lives or lost them “accidentally” for me to be less than cautious about such happenings.
We're now in the FIFTH week since Kevin Keith's freedom was put squarely in the hands of one person - Ohio Governor Mike DeWine. We've been delivering petition signatures to the governor on an almost daily basis and over 200 people have used the letter-writing tool to send him an email. We still need those actions, but it's time to get on the phone.
Please make a quick, POLITE and supportive phone call to Governor DeWine today at 614-644-4357. If it is busy or you get voicemail that is full, that means we're doing our job. Please make a note to try again later, and each day this week.
The message:
"I live in [City in Ohio] and I am calling to ask you to let Governor DeWine to know that he has my support to grant clemency to Kevin Keith and free him today. Please share this message with him."
To be sure, Governor DeWine is hearing messages from selected Ohio leaders and at least one famous celebrity, but it is equally important that every day Ohioans also weigh in. Please do so now.