Action Alerts

Friday, September 5, 4:30-10pm
Saturday, September 6, 12 noon-10pm
Sunday, September 7, 12 noon-8pm

It's time for Hot Times in Olde Towne again! The free, family-friendly event includes great music, art cars, kid's activities, cultural Olympic games, lots of food, even beer, wine and liquor, community vendors, drum circles, a poetry slam and more!

The Hot Times Music and Arts Festival will be back at 240 Parsons Avenue this year, happening Friday, September 5 through Sunday, September 7.  The festival is on the front lawn of the Columbus Health Department building between Bryden Road and Main Street, on Parsons.

This year's lineup:

Hot Times 2025 Main Street stage schedule:

FRIDAY, September 5th, 5 to 11 PM

5:00 Ron Holmes - Eclecticism

6:00 Mendelsonics 

7:00 Just Another Mojo

8:00 Whitley Jean

9:00 Willie Phoenix

10:00 Shaun Booker Dammit 

SATURDAY, Sept.6th, Noon - 10 PM

12:00 TBA

Thursday, September 4, 2025, 4:30 – 5:30 PM
Grant and 349 E. Livingston, Columbus 43215

If you think the U.S. is rapidly moving in the wrong direction with healthcare cuts, rising prices, student loan changes, corruption, loss of rights, eroding democracy, personal data collection, tariffs and massive funding for a militarized police force... Say Something!

More information and sign up here.   

Global investment in renewable energy projects hit a new record this year - but fell in the U.S. according to a study by BloombergNEF.

The first half of 2025 saw the "reallocation" of investment dollars away from the United States, with spending falling $20.5 billion, or 36 percent, from the second half of 2024. It was the steepest drop in renewable energy investment in any nation. Bloomberg stated the falloff was a direct response to the U.S. presidential election and anticipated anti-renewable federal policies.

Wednesday, September 3, 2025, 12:00 PM
Ohio is preparing to draw new congressional maps this year. The Ohio Environmental Council has invited Peter Miller with the Brennan Center for Justice to provide an in-depth dive into redistricting at the national level and its relationship to Ohio’s upcoming redistricting process. His discussion will both review recent litigation nationwide and the data-driven analysis relevant to future redistricting across the country.

General Admission Tickets: Free.  Attorney Tickets: $25 registration fee for attorneys, eligible for CLE credit.  

Sponsored by the Ohio Environmental Council. More information and link to registration here. 

Monday, September 1, 4pm
McFerson Commons, 218 West Street, downtown Columbus

Labor Day, September 1st, 2025, people in more than 1,000 communities across the 50 United States, Sweden, and the Territory of Guam will gather for Workers Over Billionaires. This is a national day of action sponsored by the same coalition that brought you this year’s May Day National Day of Action. Participants will creatively and nonviolently protest the billionaire takeover of our democracy and the government’s abandonment of the American working class.

The War on Workers.

Sunday, August 31, 3-5pm
Old First Presbyterian Church, 1101 Bryden Rd.

Join us for a community potluck where we will center our immigrant community. We will share stories, food, and more as we build collectively towards a better world.

Hosted by Old First Presbyterian Church.

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Sunday, August 31, 4pm
Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Ave.

Join Bill Cohen as he sings songs made famous by a wide variety of folks: Woody Guthrie, Sam Cooke, Dolly Parton, Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, Alabama, James Taylor, etc.

Powerful vocal harmonies will be added by veteran Columbus musicians Phil Hart and Teresa Schleifer.

Plus, we’ll recall how, decades ago, labor unions won historic reforms that many of us take for granted today — the eight-hour workday, improved workplace safety, a guaranteed minimum wage, and an end to child labor.

$10 million is up for reinvestment on September 1st.

Tell Ohio State Treasurer Robert Sprague NO MORE ISRAEL BONDS! CALL TREASURER ROBERT SPRAGUE'S OFFICE (614) 466-2160.

Ask to speak with a representative about the state's investment portfolio.

HERE'S A SCRIPT TO USE:

"Hello, my name is [Your Name], and I'm an Ohio taxpayer from [City/County].  I'm calling to urge the Treasurer's office to stop investing in Israel Bonds and put Ohio first.  Specifically, a $10 million Israel Bond investment is up for reinvestment on September 1st.

I urge the Treasurer's office to not reinvest this money. Will you please pass my message on to Treasurer Robert Sprague and his team? Talking points: Ohio has over $262 million of our taxpayer money in these bonds, which are now high-risk with a downgraded credit rating. This is a fiscally irresponsible use of our money.

Congressman Mike Carey votes to cut Medicaid, SNAP food assistance, ACA insurance subsidies, medical research grants, foreign humanitarian aid, and much more. Ohioans will die. But while Carey meets with bankers and big donors, he won't meet with us. Carey doesn't care!

Join us Wednesday evening (TONIGHT!) for the Carey Doesn't Care Candlelight Vigil, 8:15-9:15pm, Schiller Park, City Park Ave,  just South of Stewart Ave (across the street from Carey’s home). We’ll be in the park with votive lights, signs, chants, and a special slide show! This event is scheduled for right after the in person meeting, so YES, you will be able to attend both! Register for the Candlelight Vigil HERE.

Tuesday, August 26, 2025 6:00 PM -  7:30 PM ET
Equitas Health, 750 E Long St, Columbus, OH 43203

Join Abortion Forward and OHIV for a Free Condom Project Packing Party! We will be packing safer sex supply kits to be mailed across Ohio. This is a part of OHIV's Free Condom Project. For more information on the project, visit their website here: https://ohiv.org/free-condoms/.

Snacks and beverages will be provided! Come pack kits and make pro-abortion community!

An upcoming neighborhood election that was supposed to be routine has unraveled into one of the sharpest legitimacy crises in recent memory, raising the question no one at City Hall seems eager to answer: is the North Central Area Commission’s (NCAC) 2025 election even valid?

At the heart of the dispute is whether the ballots that will be circulating for the August 30 vote hold any official weight at all. As of mid-August, the Department of Neighborhoods has not confirmed whether petitions were certified, ballots set, or candidates recognized as eligible under city rules. Without that step, the “ballot” may be little more than an internal exercise — a process residents are treating as real, even if the City has not stamped it with legitimacy. The absence of any formal certification leaves the commission operating in a vacuum, raising doubts about whether the election results will be recognized by the very city that created these bodies.

A 14-page complaint filed with the city by Area Commissioner Ciera Jackson alleges that NCAC leaders bent bylaws, extended deadlines, and slow-walked records — moves she says undermine the commission’s legitimacy.