Local
Saturday, April 25, 12pm
Studio 35, 3055 Indianola Ave, Columbus, OH 43202
Ticket proceeds go directly to the Ohio Battalion of the 50 States Campaign with Car for Ukraine to purchase a truck for front line defenders in Ukraine. This screening will feature a special in person Q&A with John Gudorf, who is featured in the film.
When American Peter Duke joined a convoy from Estonia to Kyiv to deliver critical aid to Ukrainian troops, he unexpectedly discovered a country echoing the spirit and unity of America's birth in 1776. Duke witnessed the people involved in this struggle up close revealing remarkable acts of selflessness and purpose that transcended borders and politics. It changed his perception of the conflict and himself. He returned home, impassioned and determined to do more. He shared his story with his friend Keith Ori, and it ignited a mission purpose for them both!
I stepped off the 1 into Skully’s Music Diner. Fishbone were playing the Los Angeles’ alternative rock’n’roll legend’s 1986 debut album, In Your Face from Columbia Records. Fishbone started with in You Face’s Zappa instrumental joint, Post Cold World Politics.
Fishbone were soon playing, In Your Face’s single, When Problems Arise.
“When Problems Arise” is an interesting song because Fishbone toured with Columbia label-mates’ Def Jam’s Beastie Boys while License To Ill dropped after the Madonna Like A Virgin Tour fiasco. Beastie Boys 1986 Licensed To Ill sold 10,00,000 records. Law enforcement were called into the February1 987 Fishbone/Beastie Boys show at the Columbus Municipal Auditorium.
I can imagine a 1986 Columbia Records marketing meeting: Sell a L.A. skateboarding Prince meets new wave band with Rick Rubin produced New York White Rappers.
Friday, April 24
Various locations - see below
On Friday, April 24th, Social Security Works Executive Director Alex Lawson will hold a “Ghost Office” tour, headlining rallies outside three severely understaffed Ohio Social Security offices.
The Trump administration has pushed thousands of workers out of the Social Security Administration, creating "ghost offices" — locations that are open in name only, drained of the staff needed to function.
Ohio lost 12 percent of its Social Security staff between January 2025 and February 2026. As of August 2025, there are over 3,700 beneficiaries for every Social Security field office worker in Ohio. This is leaving seniors, people with disabilities, and grieving families unable to access the benefits they've earned.
Haga clic aquí para español - Click here for Spanish
Congratulations to the Haslam Sports Group (with behind the scenes help of former Columbus Mayor Coleman) for destroying years of work by residents and city commissioners to get what he wanted: McCoy Park is officially the new training location for a women’s soccer team.
Better yet, he’s getting 25 million dollars from the city and another 25 million from Franklin County to fund his dreams with our tax dollars (instead of funding another police training class or helping the homeless).
Haslam is officially the new “King of Columbus” who holds all the strings of City Council and “Mayor Suburbs”; he does what’s best for himself as a poor and misunderstood billionaire. We are now required to forget how this public park was destroyed and the opinions of the citizens were ignored.
Just forget about any kind of working democracy and celebrate women’s sports instead.
April 22, 2026, 3:45 pm to 7:30 pm
The Fawcett Center: 2400 Olentangy River Rd, Columbus, OH 43210
On Earth Day 2026, the Environmental Professionals Network will bring together climate action leaders from across Ohio for a free public event highlighting the momentum behind local climate solutions in Ohio. Cities big and small are developing innovative sustainability and resilience strategies, and this program invites attendees to see how their own communities can participate. Working closely with municipal partners in Columbus, Cleveland, Dayton, and beyond, the EPN aims to ignite interest in local climate plans, showcase practical tools for getting involved, and demonstrate how community‑rooted climate action can thrive when new voices are invited to the table.
I remember it like it was yesterday. I was driving to Baltimore, MD, where I was scheduled to give remarks at a colleagues’ retirement party at Johns Hopkins University where he had taught for many years. My young sons and I were probably thirty minutes into the drive when the news came over the radio that Prince was found dead in a lift at his suburban compound Chanhassen home, which was more like a compound.
When I heard the DJ say, “he played 25 instruments” I immediately knew about whom the speaker was referencing. However, I was not prepared for what he said next: “dead at the young age of 57.” That was the morning of Thursday, April 21, 2016. Stunned by the news I pulled into the nearest rest stop where I sat for what may have seemed like an hour to my kids but was only fifteen to twenty minutes listening to one station after another pay homage to one of the most talented musicians of the twentieth century.
In my 40 years of dealing with city hall, I have never seen so many elected officials and bureaucrats sell out the good of the public for personal gain and political survival. This $25 million taxpayer rip-off, theft of public parkland, bootlicking, underhanded dealings and propaganda filled circus is the kind of mindless debacle that puts Columbus on the map as one of the most corrupt and unethical cities in the U.S.
This unscrupulous behind the scenes criminal act ranks right up there with Redflex, the Ohio Health 315 West North Broadway ramp, The Little Turtle Roadway Project, and Ginther’s illegal ex parte phone call to Judge Mingo.
In June of 2023 and June of 2024 legislation was passed by City Council and signed off by Mayor Ginther to allocate $1.6 million for architectural and engineering services for the development of McCoy and Gender Road Parks. Council members Bankston, Doran’s, and Hardin served on the Recs and Parks committee in 2023. Councilman Wyche served as vice chair in 2024.
Ohio Immigrant Alliance just released, “Ending Immigration Jail in Ohio: How and Why,” a report that breaks down the concept of immigration jail into simple terms; provides examples of successful community organizing to end ICE jail contracts in Ohio; and offers recommendations for a more logical and humane policy.
From May 23-30, organizers are planning a week of action to end ICE jail, with interfaith vigils in Seneca, Mahoning, and Geauga Counties, and more in the works.
Happy 420 to my cannafriends and families! Today, we celebrate our favorite plant and the help, healing, and happiness that it has afforded so many for so long. Cannabis (aka marijuana) has come a long way over the last few decades and made many positive marks on the lives of its afficionados. Let’s review a few.
The Waldos. No Free Press article about 420 would be complete without first mentioning the Waldos. Here’s an excerpt from the April 2021 Mary Jane’s Guide: