Ohioan saw through outright lies about abortion amendment. We see through Dave Yost too.

We understood what we voted for or against

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost was, at best, being disingenuous when he said that Ohio voters, who turned out in historic numbers to pass the Reproductive Freedom amendment in November 2023, didn’t intend to end Ohio’s 24-hour waiting period. 

Despite the outright lies spread by opponents of Issue 1, as well as the cynical attempts by Ohio officials to upend the entire democratic process and mute the will of the people, Ohioans overwhelmingly passed the amendment, enshrining unobstructed access to reproductive healthcare, including abortion, in the Ohio Constitution.

The 24-hour waiting period is an abortion barrier put in place by extremist politicians that has no medical relevance.

Ohio voters are smarter than the leaders of our state think that we are. We understand what we are voting for or against. To state that Ohioans were confused by the straightforward language of the actual Reproductive Freedom Amendment is insulting.

Rather than Ohio voters, it seems it is Attorney General Yost who is confused by the language of the law he is entrusted to defend.

Dr. Lauren Beene, Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, University Heights

Yost, lawmakers driving Ohioans away

I’d like to optimistically believe that Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s latest attack on Ohio voters is a result of him indulging in Ohio’s recently legalized recreational pot. Instead, this is just par for the course in Ohio.

Yost and the far-right Republican Ohio legislature don’t even pretend that “elections have consequences.” That’s one of Yost's favorite phrases until it doesn’t serve his purposes.

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If Yost and others would use their energy to solve problems Ohioans need, instead of trying to circumvent the will of the voter, they wouldn’t have to resort to such raw abuses of power.

It would be great if Ohio's far-right Republicans, when they aren't fighting each other, could begin to clean up their corruption by repealing HB6.

They could stop spending their time dividing Ohio families with divisive culture issues that encourage people to leave Ohio rather than stay.

They could spend their time figuring out solutions to gun violence, to our growing housing crisis, to our dismal national ratings related to health care and other issues.

Maybe Yost should give the people who put him in office a lot more credit. We aren’t as dumb as he thinks we are.

Kevin Levine, Bexley

Demonizing political opponents and hate speech: sound familiar?

I took a German history course which dealt with the rise of National Socialism under Adolph Hitler years ago.

It described how Hitler used lies, hate speech, and historical revisionism to demonize and ultimately persecute his political opponents.

Now comes Donald Trump, using the same techniques to demonize his political opponents, and, given the opportunity, no doubt to ultimately persecute them.

I no more understand why Americans buy into Trump's rhetoric than I understood why Germans bought into Hitler's.

Neal Snyder, Columbus

Has Ted Carter missed 250 years of American history?

As an Ohio State alum I was appalled at President Ted Carter’s handling of students exercising their right to protest what is happening in Gaza.

I was disgusted by his defensive recounting in Sunday's paper of his and the OSU police department's actions. Their overreaction to a peaceful demonstration only served to escalate the situation. His reasoning: they “broke the rules“ and were, not violent, but too loud.

Professor wrong. There should be no room for extremism at Ohio State.

Protest speech is inherently loud and uncomfortable for those around it. How else is it supposed to change anything? Nothing would ever be accomplished or changed if protesters sat around whispering to each other.

Where has Carter been for the last 250 years of our nation’s history? College students have long been the conscience of this country and civil disobedience is baked into American DNA. Their right to protest should be protected, not punished.

Anne Comarda, Columbus

Mothers will mourn

While families across the country celebrate Mother’s Day, far too many of us will have an empty chair at our table.

I lost my son, Mark, to a preventable overdose. For over 100 years this country has attempted to eliminate illicit drug use by arrests and imprisonment. And for over 100 years this punitive policy has failed. This failure is evidenced by over 110,000 lives lost to overdose in 2023.

We, as a society, should support, not punish, those living with a substance use disorder. They are our sons and daughters and their lives have meaning. They are loved and they deserve our help, not our condemnation.

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Harm reduction provides the means for those like my son to remain healthy and alive. These programs include the provision of naloxone to reverse overdoses, fentanyl test strips, syringe service programs, Overdose Prevention Centers, and access to the medications methadone and buprenorphine for the treatment of opioid use disorder.

My Mother’s Day wish is that no other mother experiences the devastating pain and grief of losing a child to a preventable overdose. The rejection of punitive drug policies and the adoption of Harm Reduction services will help this wish come true.

Laura Cash, Columbus

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Yost, lawmakers working to driving Ohioans out of Ohio