Local

Wednesday, August 4, 2021, 5:00 - 7:00 PM
This town hall is a chance for us to gather (in-person!) across Ohio to talk about what’s at stake in our fight for fair maps and to hear about how folks can plug into the process.  Join AOTL Ohio and the Equal Districts Coalition to talk about how your community has been impacted by gerrymandered maps and how best we can fight for the fair maps that we deserve. WE know what’s best for our communities and OUR voices need to be heard during the redistricting process. This town hall is the first step to organizing around making our voices heard!  Location:  UFCW 4150 E Main St, Columbus.  Sign up here. 

The systemic issues inherent in American policing are nothing new. While everyone deserves to feel safe in their own community, we know Black people in our country have been terrorized and killed at the hands of the police for centuries. It’s a reality that has led millions to finally follow the lead of Black organizers and Black-led grassroots groups by calling for change that goes beyond mere reform: to divest from police as an institution and invest in community-based, life-affirming programs and solutions.

Monday, August 2, 3-4pm; or Wednesday, August 4, 12noon-1pm; this on-line event requires advance registration

This training will build expertise on how to deliver health and social services to the trans community in an affirming and inclusive manner. Basic definitions of gender identity, gender expression, and the range of trans identities (including non-binary identities) will be explained. Best practices concerning pronoun usage, the creation of inclusive forms, and the establishment of affirming and inclusive spaces will also be discussed. There will also be a live question-and-answer period.

This session will be presented by Ramona Peel [she/her/hers], Lead Trainer, Equitas Health Institute.

Two virtual sessions will be offered.

• Monday, August 2, 3-4pm

• Wednesday, August 4, 12-1pm

CEUs will be available for social work or counseling.

Registration is free, thanks to our colleagues at Kenyon College.

Sunday August 1, 11am-5pm
Vvillage Taco, 1297 Parsons Ave.
Join us for the country's only (that we know of) Jazz and VEGAN rib fest for the third year in a row!

On Wednesday, the Biden administration and a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators announced an agreement on details of a roughly $1 trillion infrastructure package, which includes $550 billion in new federal investments. Later in the day, the Senate voted 67-32 to proceed with debate on the bill. The bill’s “once-in-a-generation” investments would “enhance our competitiveness, create good jobs, and make our economy more sustainable, resilient, and just,” according to a White House statement.

The infrastructure deal is Track 1 of four legislative tracks with bills that could decisively shape the future of trains in the U.S. Find HSRA’s breakdown of all the train-related action in Congress here.

Saturday, July 31, 7pm
Lincoln Theater, 769 E. Long St.
This event is free and open to the public.
Presented by State Auto Insurance Companies, the Lincoln Theatre Association will hold a Walk of Fame induction ceremony on Saturday, July 31, at 7pm, to memorialize three Columbus natives who have made outstanding community contributions through their professional careers—jazz musician Arnett Howard, artist Roman Johnson and poet Charles “Is Said” Lyons. These local trailblazers will be honored during a ceremony that will include a multi-genre tribute to their lives and work. The second half of the ceremony will then move outdoors to reveal the new stars on the Walk of Fame. The event is free and open to the public with pre-registration. The indoor ceremony will also be available online. Both in-person and online registration can be secured at www.LincolnTheatreColumbus.com.

Saturday, July 31, 7pm
Lincoln Theater, 769 E. Long St.
This event is free and open to the public.
Presented by State Auto Insurance Companies, the Lincoln Theatre Association will hold a Walk of Fame induction ceremony on Saturday, July 31, at 7pm, to memorialize three Columbus natives who have made outstanding community contributions through their professional careers—jazz musician Arnett Howard, artist Roman Johnson and poet Charles “Is Said” Lyons. These local trailblazers will be honored during a ceremony that will include a multi-genre tribute to their lives and work. The second half of the ceremony will then move outdoors to reveal the new stars on the Walk of Fame. The event is free and open to the public with pre-registration. The indoor ceremony will also be available online. Both in-person and online registration can be secured at www.LincolnTheatreColumbus.com.

Dennis Kucinich was a hero of mine.

His newly released book, The Division of Light and Power (Finney Avenue Books), is all about how he became a hero to me nearly five decades ago when he was first a Cleveland City Councilman and then, for one glorious but controversial term, was the mayor of Cleveland, then the largest and most powerful city in Ohio.

The book is well worth reading if you, like me, were old enough to be aware of Kucinich's rise to power. If you are younger and want to learn about the era, the book will enlighten you as well.

I was living 60 miles to the south in my hometown of Ashland, Ohio. We got all of our TV and much or our radio from Cleveland, not to mention the Cleveland Plain Dealer, then the largest and most powerful newspaper in Ohio.

This column was first published in The Rooster.

I don’t know much about legal matters because I’ve tried avoiding them for most of my life, but one term I know thanks to watching Murder, She Wrote is “alibi.” It’s pretty straight forward –– if you weren’t at the scene of a crime when a crime happened, you probably didn’t commit that crime. Another axiom I’ve learned is “don’t mess with the FBI.” However, this was a new one –– what if someone who has been indicted by the FBI calls the cops on you for trespassing on their property while you’re in another state? Perhaps I should start from the beginning…