News

Veterans of all ages and their supporters lined the sidewalk from State to Broad Street in front of the Ohio Statehouse protesting the proposed Trump administration cuts to federal Veterans Administration (VA) jobs.

The Columbus demonstration answered a call for veterans' protests at capitol cities fSandy Bolzenius, a veteran at the protest, estimated there were at least 350 people in attendance.or Friday, March 14 at noon across the country demanding Congress stop the proposed cuts of 80,000 VA jobs would affect benefits many depend upon. 

Protester signs expressed anti-fascism, anti-Trump and anti-Elon Musk sentiment as well as defending the Constitution and hands off veteran's benefits. Members of Veterans for Peace held banners for their organization. Sandy Bolzenius, a veteran at the protest, estimated there were at least 350 people in attendance.

Approximately 100 students and community members gathered outside OSU Hillel Wednesday, March 5 in protest of former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who was set to speak to students and members of the hillel community. The demonstration was part of a growing wave of opposition against Bennett’s U.S. university tour, which has faced backlash at multiple campuses. Just a day prior, more than 200 students at Columbia University protested his appearance.Then a day after the OSU protest, over 100 protested his appearance at the Harvard Business School on March 6, 2025. Naftali Bennett is currently on a U.S. university tour, organized by Hillel International’s Teach-In Tour 2025, in an effort to shape narratives about Israel and its policies amid growing student activism. His presence on college campuses comes at a time when student movements are increasingly challenging Israeli state policies and advocating for Palestinian rights.

Similar to local Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) offices and programs, Columbus’s 21 area commissions could someday be shuttered by those in power, several housing advocates and activists told the Free Press.

While fundamentally different, DEI offices and area commissions share similar missions: They are pro-people by giving one and all a chance to speak out against those who control the strings and pocketbooks.

From the Near East to the Hilltop to the Far South Side to the Far West Side, these 21 area commissions are resident-based and strictly recommending bodies, they have no legal authority. But they have a consequential purpose: To represent their neighborhood(s) when City officials try to force unwanted development into their community. Commissions are also committed to preservation and enhancement of parks, streets and traffic. And during this time of unprecedented growth, logic suggests these commissions are needed more than ever.

See video here
Tuesday, March 4, 3pm Ohio Statehouse rally with speakers including local farmer and council member Christopher Gibbs, fired federal worker Wesley Stanovsek, as well as Ohio House representative Michele Grim. Making our voices heard and refusing the anti-democrati, and illegal actions of the Trump administration and those who follow. Trump is systematically purging everyone from the federal government that is not loyal to him above anyone else, including the American people and the constitution that he swore to uphold. The lives of every minority in this country are being threatened. We call for the legislators, and leaders of our nation to stand with us in these dire times.

On March 3, 2025 the Franklin County Board of Elections heard the residency challenge of Columbus City Council candidate Tiara Ross. The candidate protest was filed by Columbus resident and social media political blogger (The Rooster) D.J. Byrnes.

While under oath, Ms. Ross was asked by Board member Meredith Freedhoff “Is your driver’s license suspended?” Ms. Ross replied “I am unaware of it being suspended.” When further questioned by board members about her license being suspended and also her registration having expired, Ms. Ross stated, “I would have to double check on these records. I don’t know if it was something I missed like a notice I missed in the mail, all of that had to be changed when I moved so it’s certainly something I can follow up with.” (see attached video of hearing). 

Mr. Byrnes made a records request to the BMV of Ms. Ross’s license which showed that her license had been suspended (see attached). Further evidenced showed that her registration had also expired. The registration sticker on her vehicles license plate while in the parking lot of the Board of Elections was dated September 2024.  

The rightwing operatives who occupy the state house are at it again. This time they are using the perceived “anti-woke” sentiment and growing Sinophobia to grease the wheels on a bill that would stifle union organizing and insert jingoistic propaganda into the curriculum for all college students in the state of Ohio.  

Senate Bill 1 was introduced in January by Jerry Cirino, a business owner representing the heavily gerrymandered Senate District 18.  

Despite receiving almost 800 submitted testimonies arguing against the bill, it was passed 22-11 during the February 12 session. All nine Democrats and two token Republicans voted “nay.” The bill now moves onto the House, where a previous version died in 2023.

Prior to the vote, all Democratic senators voiced their opposition to the bill. In her statement, Senate Leader Nickie J. Antonio (D-Lakewood) said, “The premise of the bill is that somehow public universities are bastions of liberalism trying to indoctrinate our children.”

The tension in the room was palpable. A majority-minority crowd of Ohio State students, faculty, and staff packed the meeting space, faces tight with frustration, hands ready to clap in defiance. As President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr. confirmed the news—the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) and the Center for Belonging and Social Change (CBSC) were being shut down—the response was immediate.

Students jeered. Faculty members sharpened their words like weapons. The air crackled with a mixture of anger, disbelief, and determination.

Carter attempted to soften the blow, offering reassurances that Ohio State was still a place for all. The room erupted into laughter. The Students and Faculty knew exactly what was happening: a university caving under pressure, preemptively complying with laws that weren’t even in effect yet.

The meeting, which was intended to be a structured update, quickly became a battleground; and when Carter tried to shut it down early, the students and faculty refused to let it go.

The Cleveland Palestine Advocacy Community (CPAC) celebrates Cuyahoga County’s decision to end its bond investments, including $3 million in Israel Bonds, a move that redirects these funds back for the county’s needs. This decision, announced earlier today, marks a step toward responsible financial policy and a rejection of investments that support systemic human rights violations.

“I know $3 million is only a fraction of the county’s total investment in Israel Bonds,” said Dr. Shereen Naser, a CPAC advocate. “But that’s $3 million less funding the military occupation that restricts my family’s freedom and opportunities and sends bombs to Palestinian schools, and $3 million more that can be used to benefit our own communities here in Cuyahoga County.”

What is SBI and which side is on track to win?

The Advance Ohio Higher Education Act (SB1) is a bill that the majority party in the State of Ohio Legislature claims will put education over indoctrination at our colleges and universities. Trumpeted as a reform bill, SB1 would ban diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI), topics it deems controversial, and faculty strikes while requiring reviews of tenured professors along with enacting other anti-education measures. In other words, SB1 is designed instead to ensure indoctrination over education thereby, once again, proving that in MAGA world, every accusation is a confession.

Which side will win in the fight over SB1? Truth or deception? Read on.

An “important breakthrough” in Alzheimer’s disease treatment may soon be forthcoming. Local doctor Gerard Nuovo, MD recently published a study revealing encouraging results using an existing drug and mice.

An estimated seven million people in the US suffer from Alzheimer's disease. Although some treatments are available, they are expensive, may slow the disease down a bit, but offer no cure. Some have potentially negative side effects. 

The study is considered “pre-clinical” because drugs must be tested in animals before they can be tested in people. Surprisingly, mouse models of Alzheimer's disease are extensively used in research. They are valuable because the mouse brain has the actual human gene that can cause Alzheimer's disease. 

In human Alzheimer's disease, certain proteins called “BCL2 family proteins” concentrate in the damaged neurons. A mouse model of the disease involves giving mice the human gene that causes Alzheimer’s then administering a drug to block the BCL2 protein.