Prayer
February 2 through February 8 will be days of prayer and action against Human Trafficking in Rome and around the world. You can follow the events, download the 2024 prayer service, and see the prayer written by Pope Francis in 2015 on the International Day of Prayer website. Please consider working this service into your prayers starting February 2.
Advocacy and Action
As you know, the Dorothy Stang Initiative’s Plastic Taskforce aims to get the City of Cincinnati to enforce the plastic bag ban already on the city books. However, Ohio has a state law makes it unlawful for municipalities to enact bag bans. Well, the City of Athens, Ohio, home of my alma mater, Ohio University (Go Bobcats!), not only passed their ban but is enforcing it. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, who won his election with the help of significant campaign donations from Murray Energy employees, has filed an injunction to stop the City of Athens from enforcing their ban. This will have implications for our work locally. We are fighting against powerful business interests who have successfully exploited the state legislature to institute this statewide ban so that they can continue making profits.
Please call the Attorney General’s Office and your Ohio Senator and Representative. Action Network and Athens Rethink Plastics have an online tool to help you with your call. When you are through, you can report your calls to these organizations so they can track how many calls are made. I KNOW making calls to elected officials can be intimidating to some. But you will most likely just be leaving a voicemail. It only takes a couple of minutes to complete. If you cannot bring yourself to call, contact them through email.
Ohio Folks - I don’t know if you are aware, but Ohio has a housing crisis! State Senator Bill Blessing has introduced two separate bills that could help address that crisis. SB 76 aims to levy a $1500 per-unit tax on landlords that own 50 or more single-, two-, or three-family houses in a single county. This tax amount is so high it may force these institutional housing investors to sell several of their properties, increasing supply in the housing market and allowing actual citizens to purchase property. SB 36 aims to alter the foreclosure sale process in favor of tenant-buyers and certain bidders, such as nonprofits and community improvement corporations. The idea is that foreclosed homes could be more accessible for tenants and community organizations to purchase before institutional housing investors can buy them. Senator Blessing’s office is asking for advocacy to support these bills as they are currently in committee. Could you contact each Ohio Senator on these committees and request they be moved along immediately? SB 76 is stuck in the Ways and Means Committee. SB 36 is stuck in the Community Revitalization Committee.
Democracy Watch
More and more justice advocates are paying attention to several concerning our democratic process. It is something I have frankly tried to ignore. It seems so big and so frightening. However, ignoring concerning things has never helped anyone. I have added a section to the Weekly Update. So that you know – it will appear as needed.
There is a new threat on the horizon. Groups are using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to influence the outcomes of elections. Thousands of Democratic voters in New Hampshire received a phone call this week urging them not to vote in the primary elections. This recording was an AI-generated voice that sounded like President Joe Biden. Common Cause is joining with other groups to call on the Department of Justice to investigate. AI-generated content is only getting more convincing. This is a threat to many things, but it could be incredibly effective in controlling elections and devastating democracy. Please consider joining the call for investigation by signing this petition.
Don’t forget LCWR’s Transforming Grace process - seeing elections through the lens of transformative justice. The reflection guides can be found each week on the Transforming Grace website.