Letters: Proposed legislation would criminalize public protests of any kind
Letters to the Editor
Proposed legislation would criminalize public protests of any kind
Democracy can be uncomfortable. Peaceful public protest and civil disobedience a manifestation of democracy in action work by disrupting the status quo. But discomfort is a sign of healing, like the symptoms of our body’s immune response. Confronting injustice is not a comfortable thing, but it’s what our country is built upon and the source of every meaningful positive change in our history.
Yet such change is threatening to those benefiting from the current system. Three bills currently moving through the Ohio Legislature (SB 41, HB 22 and 109) claim to stop “riotous” behavior. In fact, they would effectively criminalize public protests of any kind.