Greetings!
Tomorrow is the first of three critical Election Days we are facing this year.
It’s the first of two primaries. The second primary, to select candidates for the state legislature, is still unscheduled, but likely to be held in early August. Sometimes, the primaries are more important than the general election.
On tomorrow’s ballot are Republican and Democratic primary contests to nominate candidates for U.S. Senator, Congress, Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Auditor, Treasurer, Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, Associate Justices, and numerous county judges, including those who preside over criminal trials, Juvenile Court, and Domestic Relations.
Most of these races involve candidates who will have a direct impact on your life and your community. With a less than normal turnout expected for a variety of reasons, this is your chance to have a larger than usual impact on the folk who pass, interpret and administer the laws that affect your pocketbook, your benefits, your quality of life, and the health of your community.
Be forewarned. There are a couple of races in particular that have some whackos running who are intent upon restricting your freedom and increasing state and local ignorance levels.
In sum, you have more power than usual to prevent being in greater danger than ever before of the erosion of your freedom.
Warning: you may have to do some work if any of this is new to you. Your Congressional District may have changed, and possibly your polling location. Visit here for a sample ballot and here to confirm your voting location. If you live outside of Cuyahoga County, visit here for the information you need.
You are almost certainly aware that we are in Year 3 of a pandemic. Almost unbelievably, there are many of your fellow Ohioans who are unaware that we are about to enter Year 3 of the gradual uncovering of the largest scandal in the history of our state. Put FirstEnergy or HB 6 or Larry Householder in the Search function to discover how money comes out of your pocket every month to pay for this ongoing crime.
We’re not all doom and gloom today. The Cleveland Black Futures Fund announced awards of nearly $1.6 million to 43 community nonprofit organizations and initiatives that are both black-led and black-focused. All the awardees are listed here.
Please take just a few moments to learn about at least one of these organizations. Our lack of information about and disconnection from what is happening in our community is both cause and effect of our relative powerlessness. It doesn’t have to be this way. Learning is contagious and a helluva lot better feeling than apathy.
As a friend of mine likes to say, be an agent of your own deliverance.
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