Jewish Voice for Peace organized a Zoom call with Tom Hayes, local filmmaker and participant Gaza humanitarian aid mission in late September.

Watch video here

Following his kidnapping and imprisonment in Israel, Tom returned to his home in Columbus on October 12.

Tom is a long-time advocate of Palestinian rights and a documentary filmmaker. In the 1980s, he filmed in Palestinian refugee camps and has produced three long-form documentaries on the denial of Palestinians’ rights. His 1985 documentary “Native Sons: Palestinians In Exile,” narrated by Martin Sheen, follows the lives of three refugee families living in Lebanon’s camps. His 2015 film “Two Blue Lines,” explores the impact of Jewish settlement on the Palestinians, from before the creation of the state of Israel to the present day. Hayes most recently co-directed “Voyage of the Handala,” an independent documentary about the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, is premiering Oct. 27 at Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival in Spain.

Columbus Free Press Libby Award, November 9, 2025
Bob Krasen, Healthcare for All Ohioans
Comments after the award presentation

A TV Commercial ad is based on 3 simple questions. “What’s the bad news? What’s the good news? And What’s the difference?”

The Bad News?

The people in the USA have a 3 year shorter life expectancy than our neighbors to the north in Canada.

The USA is not one of the 58 countries in the world which provide necessary healthcare to their people.

Our infant and maternal mortality are the highest among first world nations.

Hospitals are closing where they are most needed: in the inner cities and rural communities.

Doctors are tired of playing “Mommy may I?” with insurers, drug companies, and hospitals, having to get prior authorizations.

Clearly, the USA healthcare payment system not working for us.

The good news?

On behalf of the citizens of the City of Columbus I want to apologize to Ms. Averi Townsend for how she was treated by Emanuel Remy and our elected City Council. You deserve better. Everyone deserves to be treated with respect and kindness by the people we elect. The politicians who sit above us in City Hall are not entitled to anything other than the opportunity to help us become better than we were yesterday. In this they failed miserably and you suffered for their shortcomings. And unfortunately, they will never admit that they were wrong.

City Council has forgotten that in addition to showing up to meetings, their part-time job must also include love. Love for themselves first and the love of helping other people second. They lack empathy and you were the target of how little they care about us. They have no motivation to change.

Without Hardin, Remy would never have been elected.

Saturday, November 22, 4-6pm
COED, 1890 E Main St. 

Join Columbus DSA and residents across the city for a community conversation as we debrief the 2025 elections and discuss what's next for our city: how can we create a city with safe neighborhoods where people can afford to pay for their home, keep food on the table, and be represented by their political institutions. 

Food & childcare provided. Masks required & provided.

About the Columbus DSA Creating Democracy in Columbus Campaign: If we want to see the change we need, city government must be representative of our residents, not packed with hand-picked political appointees from the current leadership. We are building a campaign to ensure Columbus neighborhoods can actually elect the people they want to represent them and fight for their interests. Signup here: dsacb.us/DistrictCampaign

The so-called Gaza ceasefire was not a genuine cessation of hostility, but a strategic, cynical shift in the Israeli genocide and ongoing campaign of destruction.

 Starting on October 10, the first day of the announced ceasefire, Israel transitioned tactics: moving from indiscriminate aerial bombardment to the calculated, engineered demolishing of homes and vital infrastructure. Satellite images, corroborated by almost hourly media and ground reports, confirmed this methodical change.