Lawmaker wants slavery exception removed

The Ohio Constitution contains an exception that allows for slavery or indentured servitude as punishment for a crime, a provision state Sen. Cecil Thomas, D-Cincinnati, wants to remove.

The state constitution prohibits slavery and indentured servitude “unless for the punishment of crime” — words that Thomas wants removed. He is sponsoring a resolution, which if passed by a 3/5th majority in the House and Senate, would place the issue before voters in November.

“Words matter. The majority of Ohioans would be shocked to learn that this exception is still in our governing document,” said Thomas in a written release issued on June 19. “As we embark on making structural changes to our laws and policies that adversely impact people of color, it is important that Ohio lawmakers stand together to eliminate this painful reminder of a ruinous time in the history of our country.”

State Rep. Juanita Brent, D-Cleveland, introduced a resolution urging Congress to designate June 19th — known as Juneteenth — a paid federal holiday. On June 19, 1865, news of the end of slavery more than two years earlier finally reached southwestern states two months after the end of the Civil War.

Also this week, state Rep. Janine Boyd, D-Cleveland Heights, called for a special meeting of the Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board, which oversees the Ohio Statehouse and its grounds. Boyd wants a monument to Christopher Columbus removed from the grounds.

Boyd said in a written statement there is a long overdue racial reckoning across the country.

“Removal of this statue is not erasing history, but rather choosing not to celebrate and idolize those who do not deserve the public’s admiration. Christopher Columbus should never have been heralded as a hero and put up on a pedestal,” she said. “This statue on the Statehouse grounds represents a dark legacy of slavery, oppression, exploitation and genocide.

To people of color, it is a history still affecting our everyday lives as racism continues to pervade this country.”

Boyd’s push for the statue removal comes as Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther announced another Christopher Columbus statue would be removed from in front of Columbus City Hall.

Contact this reporter at 614224-1624 or email Laura. Bischoff@coxinc.com.