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In an attempt to rehash failed legislation from the 135th General Assembly, Ohio legislators – who are more focused on conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism – are attempting to pass a pair of bills that could severely limit the ability of Ohioans to criticize the actions of the Israeli government. S.B. 87, or its House version, H.B. 90, and S.B. 53 are bills that, when applied separately or in tandem, could prove devastating to free speech criticizing the state of Israel. 

Día de acción nacional
Frenar el Proyecto 2025

sábado 5 de abril del 2025

Capitolio estatal de Columbus, Ohio
bajo la estatua a McKinley frente a la entrada principal
12:00 a 15:00 horas

nuestras reivindicaciones:
conservar y observar la Constitución
poner fin al abuso de poder por el ejecutivo
libertad y justicia para todos

datos de asamblea:
todas y todos están bienvenidos
sol o lluvia
ponentes invitados
¡Que se escucha tu voz!

convocado por:
Indivisible
50 50 1 Ohio
Indivisible ohioano
Causa común

There was a time, not too long ago, when Ohio State University (OSU) was truly a “State” school. If a young person from Ohio could get their high school diploma with a C+ average, had the financial means through help or loans, and the will to balance school and fun, they would have a good chance to earn a degree from Thee, and do so at the main campus.

The days of OSU students scraping by together in aging but cozy off-campus homes or rowhouses – drinking beer from $10 shared buckets at Mustards or Papa Johns to make sure everyone could pay rent, for instance – is slowly becoming a distant memory.

A halcyon era heartlessly tossed into the dustbin by (rich white) elitists. The good struggle for Ohioans of modest means dashed. Just ask any of the thousands of young people who were recently rejected by OSU. Some were made to choose Miami University as their second choice ironically, which used to be the first choice of many Ohioans. History reveals it was Gordon Gee who eliminated open enrollment for in-state students, and since then, OSU’s average GPA went from 2.5 to 3.6 while tuition has doubled.

More than 150,000 people have signed a petition begun by a Black church to boycott Target department and multi-purpose stores, because of their abandonment of their diversity, equity, and inclusion or DEI program. I haven’t been in a Target for years, and I’m definitely not going in there now.

The last step in changing a democracy to an autocracy is to rewrite the national constitution to remove the last traces of democratic rule and officially place all power in the hands of the dictator. On March 11, the Ohio Senate General Government Committee held its second hearing on SJR 3, Senate Joint Resolution 3, which could do just that.

SJR 3 calls for the creation of a federal Constitutional Convention. The purpose of the convention would be to rewrite the US constitution. Article V of the constitution allows for the creation of such a convention, but it gives no parameters or limitations on its powers. Every aspect of the US Constitution would be on the chopping block, from the separation of powers, to the freedoms of speech and assembly, to the requirement that the president be a natural born citizen. Hello president Musk.

What if bodies of water were guaranteed the kinds of legal rights that would criminalize their destruction? What if communities had the authority to enact laws that prevented pollution, extraction, and waste-dumping?

This would be the case under a new bill introduced into the New York State Assembly by Patrick Burke on Wednesday. If it becomes law, New York Assembly Bill AO5156A, the Great Lakes and State Waters Bill of Rights, would recognize “unalienable and fundamental rights to exist, persist, flourish, naturally evolve, regenerate and be restored” for the Great Lakes and other watersheds and ecosystems throughout New York State.

"All people deserve healthy ecosystems and clean water, and recognizing the inherent rights of nature to exist and flourish is the best way to protect this,” says Assemblyman Burke. “Protecting one watershed or regulating toxins one at a time isn't enough. All New Yorkers are connected through our water, and so this bill protects all of us." 

The South Side of Columbus – often forgotten and maligned by the rest of Central Ohio – could someday be transformed by two massive mixed-use developments with their developers seeking greater density (building higher) with little to no parking. One at the Great Southern Shopping Center, after it is bulldozed, and the other across South High St. from “The Fort,” which is near the State Route 104 on-ramps and a few miles from German Village.

The United States of America—the 50501 Movement is calling for the immediate impeachment and conviction of President Donald J Trump for the high crime of abuse of power. The 50501 movement will continue to stand up for the Constitution and for American democracy, even when our own government refuses to.

TRUMP’S ABUSE OF POWER
At 12:35 AM ET on March 17th, President Donald Trump made a post on Truth Social “declaring” the reversal and voiding of all pardons made by former President Joe Biden, including four members of the January 6th investigation committee. This action isn’t only an attack on the former president; it is a direct assault on the rule of law in our country and a chilling escalation of political persecution.

Throughout my political career, I have steadfastly defended the First Amendment, particularly the right to free speech. In 2002, I delivered a speech entitled A Prayer for America, where I challenged the rationale of the PATRIOT Act and questioned actions that infringed upon the constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech and protection against unreasonable searches.

My commitment to upholding free speech has been a guiding principle throughout my tenure in public service. While a Member of Congress, I consistently opposed measures that, in my view, threatened civil liberties, including the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007, which I believed was unconstitutional and could potentially criminalize thought. The bill passed. I was one of 6 members who voted against it.

The Current Assault on Free Speech on Campus