Tag Archives: ohio

Ohio Takes on the Drug Companies

A hard pill to swallow

The state of Ohio is looking to stifle the escalating number of prescription drug abuse related deaths within the state. Just last year alone, in only one county in the state, 666 residents died. Ohio is blaming the rising death count on the conglomerate of drug companies that downplay the dangers involved in consuming prescription drugs. The five drug companies at the center of the initiated lawsuit are Purdue Pharma, Endo Health Solutions, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and subsidiary Cephalon, Johnson & Johnson and subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and Allergan. Representatives for Ohio argue that they would not have invested a large portion of the state’s funding towards prescribed medication had they known the extremely addictive nature of the drugs the companies produce. Read more

Ohio School Must Improve Anti-Bullying Efforts after Brutal Attack

Protect all students

On October 17^th, 2011 a bully waited anxiously inside the doors of a classroom of the Union-Scioto High School in Ohio for Zack Huston, a fifteen year-old homosexual freshman at the school, to walk in. Upon Zack’s arrival, he was immediately met with fists. The bully assaulted Zach for no reason except that Zach was gay. He knocked him to the ground, and continually punched him. The video is difficult to watch.

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Right to Wear a T-Shirt Confirmed for High School Student

No dress code

An Ohio teenager won the right to wear a “Jesus is not a homophobe” t-shirt at his high school. Maverick Couch first wore the t-shirt in April 2011 to commemorate a “Day of Silence”, an event where participants remain silent throughout the day, representative of the inability of many LGBT students to speak out against bullying due to fear, undeserved shame, doubt, etc. Being a young gay man himself and participating in an LGBT awareness event, Maverick thought nothing much of donning his thought-provoking and pro-LGBT t-shirt. The Powers that Be at the high school, however, probably incensed that dem der homos get a whole day to themselves in the first place, told Maverick that he had to wear the shirt inside-out in order to hide the supposedly-incendiary message. Later that same year, Maverick asked his principal for permission to wear the shirt again. This time, he was threatened with suspension if he wore the shirt. Unfortunately for the high school, instead of wearing the shirt, Maverick decided to sue the school, alleging that his First Amendment rights were trounced. The suit snowballed, and soon brought the controversy to a global audience, providing yet more evidence that the Streisand Effect should not be taken lightly.