URGENT: Help Stop the GOP Attack on Ohio Higher Ed

Call to Action....and Activism...to Stop SB1/HB6.

Some of you may know of (or be part of) the organization I help lead called Blue Ohio—a large community of people who come together to support candidates running for Ohio statehouse from around the state. And a group hungry to take action to protect democracy here in Ohio and elsewhere.

Last Friday, during our monthly Blue Ohio meeting, our friend and fellow activist Rachel Coyle explained the specifics of a horrible bill making its way through the Ohio state legislature: SB1/HB6.

I’m writing this to amplify Rachel’s and our call to action to our members to do what we can to stop this destructive bill. Here are the details:

The “Education Destruction Act”

Rachel calls it the Education Destruction Act, and that seems to be an apt title.

It would ban departments, classes, curriculum, and tenure at public colleges/universities. It also is a fierce attack on workers' rights and collective bargaining.

Similar to the national attack on academic freedom and teaching at all levels (read this essay from my friend David Blight about how much damage that would do), it sets rules around classroom discussion of "controversial topics,” defined to include "any belief or policy that is the subject of political controversy, including climate policies, electoral politics, foreign policy, diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, immigration policy, marriage, or abortion.”

The rules the bill establishes around such topics mean that provably false theories (like flat earth, or chemtrails, or Holocaust denial) would need to be given actual serious discussion. As Rachel writes: “Experts have testified that this would make it nearly impossible to teach about historical events such as the Holocaust, because they could not correct students who don’t believe it happened. While medical students have stated that this would place patients’ lives in danger, because they would not learn to address differing health outcomes for different communities.”

If it passes, Ohio will lose students and professors who will go to institutions in other states where academic freedom and the truth itself are not under attack. That exodus will hurt Ohio communities, families and the Ohio economy. (After all, our institutions of higher ed have long been one of our great strengths, drawing talent from across the country).

If you'd like to see all the bill specifics, Rachel has an incredibly detailed bill breakdown, which you can read here.

Bottom line: this bill is bad for Ohio, bad for workers, but it's a priority for the Ohio GOP. They’ve tried to push it through for years now, and here they go again.

And because of their past failures, they're trying to push it through quickly – by next Wednesday – and they're betting on people being distracted and disengaged.

Let's prove them wrong!

YOU can speak out against this bill by (1) calling your legislators and/or (2) testifying (in writing or in person) in a hearing on Tuesday.

First, CALL state representative and state senator and let them know you strongly disapprove of this bill. You can find who represents you by going HERE and entering in your street address.

When you call, you will either speak to a staffer or leave a voicemail. You can simply say that you oppose SB1/HB6, briefly say why, and that you want the Senator/Representative to vote against it.

Second, the Ohio Senate will hold a hearing on this bill Tuesday at 2 p.m. and you can testify against it! In Ohio, we can TESTIFY either in writing or in person.

We know that can sound intimidating, but it's an excellent way to make sure your voice is heard. If you would like to testify (whether in person or in writing) Rachel has put together a wonderful template to use. You can find that template by clicking here.

***NOTE: If you would like to testify you need to provide your witness slip and testimony by Monday at 2pm.***

Again, you can follow Rachel's straightforward directions on how to submit that testimony and witness slip by clicking here.

If you would like to see Rachel's summary of the bill but you missed our January meeting, you can watch the recording by clicking here. (A note that we are aware that the video image sizing is different than is typical for our meeting videos. We're still working with our video host to resolve that issue.)

If you do testify – please let us know. We'd love to see your pictures.

Finally, if you are interested in more direct action such as this in Ohio, please become a member of Blue Ohio by signing on HERE.