A coalition of civil rights groups including the Ohio NAACP, the Ohio Unity Coalition, the Ohio State Conference of the NAACP and the Ohio Organizing Collaborative today responded to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s statements on the Citizens Not Politicians ballot measure. They released the following statement:

"This amendment is incredibly important because Ohio is still one of the 10 most gerrymandered states in our nation,” said Petee Talley, executive director of the Ohio Unity Coalition. “In 2022, residents in several communities were gerrymandered into districts to dilute their voting power. One such gerrymandered in Toledo, Ohio, resulted in roughly 38,000 black citizens in SD11 in Lucas County being disenfranchised. The best way to make the districting process fairer is to get politicians out of it, so they can’t stack the deck in their favor just to gain and keep power.”

After two years and over $3 million later, Ginther and City Council once again showed their true colors and genuflected to those who have historically continued to control development policies in Columbus: the developers and the development community. And after all the bragging about how many people sent in comments, attended public meetings, and the creation of the Zone In propaganda gallery, that there were virtually no changes made to the city’s initial Zone In policy. Yes, a two-year dog and pony show that resulted in ignoring public comment.    

Joe Biden recently made history by endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris for the 2024 presidential race after dropping out. With Harris likely to secure the nomination, the focus shifts to her choice of running mate.

The list of potential candidates includes Governors Newsom (CA), Whitmer (MI), Beshear (KY), Shapiro (PA), Pritzker (IL), and Cooper (NC), along with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and U.S. Senator Mark Kelly (AZ). Although Newsom and Whitmer are strong candidates, Whitmer has reportedly declined the spot. Newsom, meanwhile, is from California, just like Harris. The Constitution prohibits a ticket with two people from the same state, and while they could solve that by having one of them change their official residence, it may come off as manipulative and unpopular, especially when MAGA Republicans paint California as a “woke” state.

From The Presbyterian Church USA

The Cuban people are facing shortages of clean water, medicine, and medical equipment, and the price of food has skyrocketed. These conditions are causing families to go hungry and flee the island. Over a million Cubans have left the island in the past two years.  At the same time, it is nearly impossible for U.S. humanitarian and faith organizations to provide humanitarian aid to the Cuban people. The main obstacle is the fact that Cuba is on the State Department’s State Sponsors of Terrorism List (SSOT). 

Because banks fear running afoul of U.S. anti-terrorism laws and regulations, it can take years for groups to get much-needed aid and finances into the country. In 2015, President Obama removed Cuba from the SSOT list as part of the opening of diplomatic relations with Cuba. However, in 2021, the Trump Administration returned Cuba to the SSOT list after Cuba served as a neutral host for international peace talks between the government of Colombia and the National Liberation Army (ELN), a rebel group.