The first memory I have of Wendy’s was in the mid 1970’s in Albuquerque, New Mexico. My mother told me of a new restaurant in Old Town that served square hamburgers. She loved that they had a salad bar – the old-style salad bar where you had the option of one serving or all you can eat, but everyone cheated. They served a delicious burger with fresh lettuce and tomatoes. It’s a good memory of my mom who was born in the country but called herself a “city girl.” She considered Wendy’s to be “city living.”

More recently in 2013, a friend of mine and local Columbus worker’s rights activist Rubèn Castilla Herrera gave a talk. He held up a tomato and contemplated, how did the tomato in his hand arrive in Columbus? Who picked it? He and his family were pickers of fruit and vegetables in his youth. He was working with an organization called the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) and their struggle for justice in the fields and their goal for Fair Food. The CIW formed to combat the historical mistreatment of these farm workers in the work place.    

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As the primary election for Ohio governor draws near, voters want to know where candidates stand on issues that affect Ohioans the most. To get some answers, Yes We Can Columbus hosted a candidates’ forum on March 12 at Strongwater Food and Spirits.

Democratic and Green gubernatorial candidates answered questions that were crowdsourced from the audience — about economic segregation, affordable housing, funding public education, police brutality, abortion rights, and gun control. Candidates proposed various solutions to these issues, but they had no major disagreements about the causes and nature of the problems.

Candidates did disagree about the influence of moneyed interests in politics. Moderator Dr. Melissa Crum asked the candidates these questions: Will you pledge to refuse contributions from corporate PACs, from the fossil fuel industry, and from the National Rifle Association? And what will you do fight the influence of money in our politics at all levels of government?

Thursday, March 29, 7pm
2115 North High Street (The Busch House), NOT St. Stephen’s
Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico six months ago. It was the most catastrophic storm to hit the island in over a century. 200,000 people are still without power making this the longest blackout in U.S. history. 
Federal neglect, colonial oppression, and climate change brought devastation even before the storm. After the storm, we have seen a battle between wealthy investors and working class Puerto Ricans fighting for the island's future. The Puerto Rican government, under the control of US Empire, has pushed intense forms of austerity and neoliberalism on to the island. They have tried to privatize public power providers as well as public schools. However, just last week, teachers planned a day-long strike to resist the privatization. The story of Puerto Rico after Maria is one of suffering and imperial exploitation, but also one of solidarity and the struggle against oppression.
Join ISO this Thursday as we discuss the state of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, and stick around to discuss our upcoming plans for the Socialism 2018 Conference!