Youth Rights

02.18.21

School Resource Officers Exacerbate the School-To-Prison Pipeline for Students of Color

By Celina Coming

Our fight for racial justice doesn’t stop at the figurative “schoolhouse gate.” The school-to-prison pipeline is yet another way that Black and Brown bodies are funneled into negative interactions with law enforcement at a young age, far too often resulting in arrest and the irreparable consequences of getting caught up in the mass incarceration system.

10.20.20

Here’s How To Find Your Polling Location To Vote In-Person on Election Day

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

If there is anything 2020 has shown us, it’s that things can become extremely unpredictable – and very quickly. If you’re planning on voting on Election Day, you might be particularly wary of this unpredictability, especially since we saw primary polling places change rapidly with just days left to vote, and then in-person voting being cancelled completely on the originally scheduled Primary Election Day  March 17, 2020.

10.05.20

This Year, I’m “Showing Up” In A New Way

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

I voted by mail for the first time in the April 2020 Primary due to COVID19.  Prior to that, I’ve always taken great pride to vote in person.  To me, it was the least I could do to honor the legacy of the fight for African Americans to have the right to vote. 

09.21.20

Voting While Trans: Three Steps to Ensure Your Voice is Heard This Election

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

The 2020 General Election is going to be one for the books. To say there is a lot on the line is an understatement of epic proportions. We are in the midst of a global pandemic and a national racial justice moment of reckoning.

09.15.20

Individuals Experiencing Homelessness Face Unfair Hurdles When Casting a Ballot

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

Our entire electoral system is deeply related to one’s residency. Where you live determines what district you vote in, the candidates you choose to support each election, and the issues that appear on your ballot. But, can you vote if you do not have a traditional place of residence?

08.28.20

Keep Calm and Vote On: 3 Ways to Cast your Ballot This Election Season

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

Back in March when the nation was closing down due to the global pandemic and the future of the Ohio Primary was uncertain, we told you: Keep Calm and Vote on!

And now we’re here to tell you: Keep Calm and Vote on… Again!

08.13.20

Voter Suppression Lessons Learned from the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

August 18 of this year will be 100 years since the last of the 36 ratifying states that were required to secure adoption were confirmed, and the Nineteenth Amendment’s ratification to include voting for women came to be.

Led by activists Susan B.

08.11.20

Innocent Until Proven Guilty? Not in Ohio

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

 
 
Ever think about what might happen if you get arrested upon suspicion of committing a crime?  Our Constitution guarantees we are innocent until proven guilty, right?  Perhaps not.

Let’s go back to the basics and talk about bail… So, what is bail? 

08.06.20

7 Rights Every Student Should Know Before Returning to School

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

*Explanations of students’ rights in this article are not legal advice. If you feel that your rights as a student may have been violated, please speak to and/or obtain a lawyer.

Though it seems like we likely won’t find out about whether we’ll physically be able to return to schools, colleges, and universities until it is literally time to begin classes, the fact of the matter is that as college and high, middle, and elementary students, we must know our rights so that if they are ever infringed upon, we can stand up for them.

07.27.20

Police and Schools – a Bond Needing to be Broken

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

Since the end of May, protests have rocked the nation after the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, resulting in incredible responses on many levels. They have included Confederate statues coming down, Minneapolis agreeing to dismantle their police force, and companies across many different areas committing to equity and racial justice.

03.25.20

Voting Rights Groups Push Back On Senate Bill 294

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

To: Speaker Householder, Minority Leader Sykes, Senate President Obhof, Minority Leader Kenny Yuko, all members of the Ohio General Assembly

03.13.20

Ohioans: Here’s How to Keep Calm and Vote on

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

If you thought voting was confusing any other time than right now, coronavirus has most certainly beaten that standard by a long shot. With schools shutting down, polling locations changing last minute due to vulnerable population concerns, and the number of cases increasing daily, registered voters might be feeling panicked and wondering if you should even go out to vote.

02.24.20

All Ohioans Can Live up to the Legacy of Black History Month – Here’s How

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

Late last year, the Economics Policy Institute Economic Analysis and Research Network (EARN) released a new report which made something glaringly obvious: Ohio still has a major racism problem. The evidence is there in many glaring ways – for instance, Ohio is in the top ten states with the largest ratio between black and white unemployment; Dayton and Cleveland are two of the six metropolitan areas in which poverty among the black population exceeds 40%; and like many Midwestern states, Ohio also imprisons African Americans at more than five times the rate of white individuals.

12.18.19

Ohio’s Jails and Prisons Are Fueling Crisis-Level Opioid Overdose Deaths

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

Although Ohio is among the states hardest hit by the nationwide opioid epidemic—with the incarcerated population particularly at risk—numerous county jail authorities are failing to provide even the most basic medical care needed to blunt this ongoing crisis. This denial of treatment to people suffering from opioid use disorder (OUD) is making it far more likely that Ohioans will remain captive to this disease—and even die of a drug overdose.

12.09.19

What’s Really Fraudulent about Our Elections

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

On Thursday, December 5, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose claimed 354 non-citizens either voted or were registered to vote last year, and he forwarded the names of those individuals to Attorney General Dave Yost for potential charges. Of the 354 reported, 77 of them cast ballots in 2018.

12.09.19

When It Comes to Voter Turnout, Ohio Youth Lags Behind

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

In 2008, President Barack Obama targeted Ohio youth when it came to gaining votes for the Democratic primary as he ran against Hillary Clinton. This, as it is obvious nearly a decade later, worked in his favor as he went on to serve for two terms as President.

10.30.19

How Halloween Inspired My Activism

By Sarah Khan-Williamson

For most people Halloween conjures up images of ghosts, monsters, and too much candy. For me, I’m taken back to a time I was growing my activist wings – even though I didn’t know it at the time.

When I was nine, I petitioned my own city council.

09.21.15

Racial Segregation in Schools Still Exists

By Steve David

The monumental events of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s gave hope to many African-Americans who desired an end to racial segregation and discrimination. The abolishment of Jim Crow laws ended the implementation of laws that supported racial segregation in Southern states.

12.06.14

Fallout From Ferguson: Takeaways From Two Ohio Protests

By Ellen Kubit

“NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE!”

That age-old protesters’ rallying cry has been echoing across the country since November 24 when a grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri, failed to indict the police officer responsible for killing Michael Brown. The following day, people in several Ohio towns and throughout the nation gathered in protest.

05.30.14

Ohio’s Children Will Now Be Free From Isolation

By Shakyra Diaz

Children in Ohio’s youth prisons will finally be free from extreme isolation and seclusion. After youths suffered collectively through thousands of hours of being locked in isolation, the Ohio Department of Youth Services has now agreed to “dramatically reduce the conditions under which seclusion is allowed and the duration of seclusion.”