PRESS RELEASE                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    MARCH 12, 2012

WE ARE OHIO TO FOCUS ON WORKER AND VOTER RIGHTS IN 2012

COLUMBUS - We Are Ohio announced Monday the coalition representing hundreds of thousands of Ohioans will actively fight misguided and deceptive attacks on worker or voter rights in 2012.

"We are Ohio will be actively engaged throughout 2012.  We will stand to protect our middle class neighbors and working families. Too often extremist politics enters the fray and Ohioans recognize that it truly hurts us all,” said Doug Stern, a Cincinnati firefighter. “The 2.1 million voters who vetoed Senate Bill 5, the 1.3 million Ohioans who signed the petition and the more than 17,000 volunteers are here to stay. Together, We Are Ohio!.”

We Are Ohio held six press conferences on Monday in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Dayton, Toledo and Youngstown to announce the citizen-driven, grass-roots organization will inform, educate and engage Ohioans in 2012 so they will understand that “Right to Work” is Wrong for us all.

"Right to work is wrong. The anti-worker forces are trying to deceive Ohioans again just like they did with Senate Bill 5.  Autoworkers and the automobile industry are a vital part of Ohio's economy and we will stand with our neighbors in We Are Ohio to fight unfair attacks on jobs, our communities, workers, workers' rights and worker safety," said Marci Leahey, an autoworker from Perrysburg.

We Are Ohio will also urge citizens to veto House Bill 194, the unfair attack on voting rights law passed last year.

“House Bill 194 is this year’s Senate Bill 5. Voters have the chance to repeat their historic citizen’s veto by wiping this attack on voting rights off the books this November,” said Louis Brown, a dispatcher in the Cleveland water department. “Voting is a sacred right in our Democracy. I'm joining We Are Ohio to fight for my right to vote.”

We Are Ohio formed in 2011 and led the effort to veto Senate Bill 5 by a 62-38% margin last November. We Are Ohio is a citizen-driven, community-based, bipartisan coalition that includes public and private sector workers and employees, autoworkers, police officers, firefighters, teachers, nurses, pastors, small business owners, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents, local elected officials and business leaders, students, Moms, Dads, family members, and your neighbors.

For more information:

Dennis Willard
614.209.8945
willard.pm@gmail.com