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Some fear this may happen at the Ohio Statehouse.
PHOTO: JOSEPH E. BAKER, PUBLIC DOMAIN, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
West Chester State Rep. Jennifer Gross Asks Pastor to Banish ‘Witchcraft’ at Ohio Statehouse West Chester State Rep. Jennifer Gross Asks Pastor to Banish ‘Witchcraft’ at Ohio Statehouse e pastor also rallied House members against the “rulers of darkness.”
e pastor also rallied House members against the “rulers of darkness.” BY ALLISON BABKA AND MADELINE FENING
BY ALLISON BABKA AND MADELINE FENING
Halloween is long over, but House Rep. Jennifer Gross from West Chester still is “I thank you for every member of this House who has made the necessary sacri ces in order to follow focused on casting “witchcraft” out of the Ohio Statehouse.
At the start of a chamber session on Dec. 1, Gross introduced Curtis Hill, an associate pastor at LifeChurch in West Chester, to lead the assembly in prayer. Prayer – frequently Christian – typically kicks o sessions at the Ohio House of Representatives and is followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, but this invocation had a twist.
“Curtis is an emerging prophetic voice in his generation. He empowers believers to think di erently and consider the spiritual implications of world events as the heavenly realm in uences them,” Gross, a Republican, told the assembly as she welcomed her guest to the lectern.
Hill proceeded to pray over the Ohio House. the holy calling of creating laws that protect the freedom that was given by you, Jesus. For where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom,” Hill said, possibly pointing only to (Christian) religious freedom but not to the freedom to have agency over one’s own body or the freedom to feel reasonably safe from a deadly communicable virus or guns. Hill then rallied the House members against the “rulers of darkness.” “We dedicate this House to you and your righteousness and your holiness and we come against every principality, power, ideology and doctrine that attempts to raise itself above the knowledge of you, Jesus, and we cast them down,” Hill said, seemingly placing non-Christian religions and spiritual traditions on a lower plane within a space for public governance. “God, I pray that you keep us from engaging in battle with each other, but that we would only battle against these principalities and rulers of darkness.”
And that’s the moment when Hill renounced witchcraft on behalf of all House members, regardless if they asked for it or not.
“According to the authority of those who have been given Christ Jesus, I bind every foul spirit that is attempting to in uence anyone who works in this space, speci cally any spirit of control, manipulation, fear, apathy, harassment, prejudice, malice, perversion, any and all witchcraft, divisiveness, deceit, corruption,” Hill said in a long list of things he wanted to cast out.
Naturally, Twitter users reacted to the sermon – particularly women, a group that over centuries had been burned, stoned or locked up for being
Halloween is long over, but House Rep. Jennifer Gross from West Chester still is focused on casting “witchcraft” out of the Ohio Statehouse.
At the start of a chamber session on Dec. 1, Gross introduced Curtis Hill, an associate pastor at LifeChurch in West Chester, to lead the assembly in prayer. Prayer – frequently Christian – typically kicks o sessions at the Ohio House of Representatives and is followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, but this invocation had a twist. “Curtis is an emerging prophetic voice in his generation. He empowers believers to think di erently and consider the spiritual implications of world events as the heavenly realm in uences them,” Gross, a Republican, told the assembly as she welcomed her guest to the lectern. Hill proceeded to pray over the Ohio House. “witches.” “Ladies, put your brooms away! @ ohiogop @jenniferforrep have decided they’re nally going to tackle the big issues here in Ohio: ‘witchcraft,’” one Twitter user said. “Tackling issues of ‘witchcraft” by invoking a binding spell?… interesting choice…,” another remarked. “Between this performative nonsense, spreading anti-vaccine and Covid misinformation, and spreading
“I thank you for every member of this House who has made the necessary sacri ces in order to follow the holy calling of creating laws that protect the freedom that was given by you, Jesus. For where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom,” Hill said, possibly pointing only to (Christian) religious freedom but not to the freedom to have agency over one’s own body or the freedom to feel reasonably safe from a deadly communicable virus or guns.
Hill then rallied the House members against the “rulers of darkness.”
“We dedicate this House to you and your righteousness and your holiness and we come against every principality, power, ideology and doctrine that attempts to raise itself above the knowledge of you, Jesus, and we cast them down,” Hill said, seemingly placing non-Christian religions and spiritual traditions on a lower plane within a space for public governance. “God, I pray that you keep us from engaging in battle with each other, but that we would only battle against these principalities and rulers of darkness.”
And that’s the moment when Hill renounced witchcraft on behalf of all House members, regardless if they asked for it or not.
“According to the authority of those who have been given Christ Jesus, I bind every foul spirit that is attempting to in uence anyone who works in this space, speci cally any spirit of control, manipulation, fear, apathy, harassment, prejudice, malice, perversion, any and all witchcraft, divisiveness, deceit, corruption,” Hill said in a long list of things he wanted to cast out.
Naturally, Twitter users reacted to the sermon – particularly women, a group that over centuries had been burned, stoned or locked up for being “witches.”
“Ladies, put your brooms away! @ ohiogop @jenniferforrep have decided they’re nally going to tackle the big issues here in Ohio: ‘witchcraft,’” one Twitter user said.
“Tackling issues of ‘witchcraft” by invoking a binding spell?… interesting choice…,” another remarked.
“Between this performative nonsense, spreading anti-vaccine and Covid misinformation, and spreading
"God, I pray that "God, I pray that you keep us from you keep us from engaging in battle engaging in battle with each other, but with each other, but that we would only that we would only battle against these battle against these principalities and principalities and rulers of darkness." rulers of darkness."
2020 election conspiracies, I am very embarrassed to have her as my state rep,” someone else chimed in.
CityBeat reached out to Gross for comment but did not hear back by press time.
Statehouse Quackery
Gross has a history of questionable or performative episodes in the House chamber.
House Health Committee chairman Scott Lipps, a Republican, previously has said that Gross had personally requested that Dr. Sherri Tenpenny of Cleveland testify in 2021 supporting Gross’ bill, the “Vaccine Choice and Anti-Discrimination Act.” e sub bill for HB 248 would “prohibit mandatory vaccinations, vaccination status disclosures, and certain other actions regarding vaccinations” if passed
Public health experts were against Gross’ bill, saying that the legislation would suppress Ohio’s vaccination rates against a number of diseases and would increase the likelihood of outbreaks of infectious disease.
At Gross’ behest, Tenpenny famously and falsely testi ed to the Ohio House Health Committee in 2021 that COVID-19 vaccines magnetize their recipients and “interface” with 5G towers. Tenpenny received national attention for her claims, which had been swirling and ampli ed through far-right channels, despite being debunked repeatedly by epidemiologists and other doctors.
Tenpenny is a prominent anti-vaccination advocate deemed “unreliable” by a special master in federal court, who forbade her testimony as an expert witness in an alleged vaccine injury case. She is among the 12 most proli c disseminators of COVID-19 misinformation on social media, according to research from the Center for Countering Digital Hate. e state medical board launched an investigation into Tenpenny in November.
Relatedly, at the height of the pandemic, Gross loudly opposed COVID19 public health protocols, such as mask and vaccination requirements, despite then-emerging science supporting such measures.
In one 2021 demonstration, Gross brought a large group of supporters to Holtman’s Donuts allegedly to knowingly ignore the state and local public health policies that were in place at the time, even as local o cials pleaded for the public to act and doctors were overwhelmed by the number of COVID-19 patients at medical facilities.
Gross did not respond to CityBeat’s repeated requests for comment after the incident.
Cincinnati Adopts ‘Complete Streets’ Policy to Prioritize Pedestrian Safety, Accessibility
BY MADELINE FENING
Officials in Cincinnati are using a Complete Streets project in Brooklyn as a guide.
PHOTO: NYCDOT
Pedestrian-friendly “Complete Streets” are coming to Cincinnati, thanks to a new law passed by city council on Nov. 30. e council unanimously passed the measure, which requires the Cincinnati Department of Transportation and Engineering (DOTE) to better consider non-vehicle travelers by adhering to the Complete Streets model, which designs and operates streets with a focus on accessibility and safety.
Council member Mark Je reys, the measure’s co-author, said Complete Streets represents a historic shift in city transportation.
“For 75 years, we designed streets and thought rst about cars; how fast we can get cars through, speed was more important, and this ips it,” Je reys said. “When you build mini highways through neighborhoods, it destroys a sense of community. When you have Complete Streets, it builds community.” e Complete Streets model comes from the Complete Streets Coalition, a national nonpro t, non-partisan alliance of organizations and transportation professionals. According to the coalition’s website, more than 1,600 Complete Streets policies have been passed in the United States.
Complete Streets requires DOTE to consider ve categories when working on roads and sidewalks in the city. If an improvement can’t be made, DOTE must document why. e categories include bike facilities, sidewalk and curb ramps, tra c calming measures, overall safety improvements and comfort enhancements
A matter of public health
During a Nov. 22 climate, environment and infrastructure committee meeting, Dustin Hol nger from the American Heart Association said that Complete Streets is a matter of public health.
“ ese kinds of safety improvements to our streets will help provide more opportunities to our people to be physically active as a part of their daily routines,” Hol nger said. “Living in walkable communities lowers the risk of heart disease, stroke, hypertension, diabetes and some types of cancer.”
Hol nger urged the council to “make up for years of lost opportunities” in low-income communities by prioritizing Complete Streets in neighborhoods that have been historically overlooked for improvements.
“We would suggest the city’s formal departmental guidance state that projects equitably prioritize projects in underserved neighborhoods and communities with lower household incomes, and communities of color that have lacked well-maintained routes to parks and schools — roads, bike lanes, sidewalks — for some decades,” Hol nger said. “In many cases they do not have safe transportation options at all, and these same neighborhoods often experience higher rates of chronic diseases.”
Complete Streets went into e ect immediately after the council’s vote.
Scott Satterfield, New UC Bearcats Football Coach: ‘I Want to Be Part of That’
BY ALLISON BABKA
The deal for the University of Cincinnati’s 43rd head football coach came together quickly, and Scott Satter eld just wanted to enjoy the whirlwind.
“Man, what an honor it is for me to be here. It truly is. I mean, I’m honored to be a football coach, to be able to help mentor young men, and there’s not a better place to do it than right here at the University of Cincinnati,” the Bearcats’ new head coach told media on Dec. 5.
Just hours after UC announced that Satter eld would take over for Luke Fickell, who departed for the University of Wisconsin about a week prior, the coach shared his vision for his new team.
“I come to Cincinnati with a program that is used to winning, that wins championships. I want to be a part of that,” Satter eld said. “Twelve bowls in 16 years. at’s tremendous. We want to continue that.”
Satter eld, now UC’s 43rd head coach, had been leading the University of Louisville Cardinals since the 2019 season, posting a 25-24 record with three bowl games over four seasons. Before that, Satter eld compiled a 51-24 record over six seasons at Appalachian State University, his alma mater where he’d also earned rst-team all-conference honors as a quarterback.
Louisville ended 2022 with a 7-5 record in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Previous reports claimed that Satter eld’s deal with Cincy came together quickly, and the new coach con rmed that during the brie ng. Satter eld said that UC’s leadership, athletics department and a looming conference move in uenced his decision to leave Louisville.
“Once I had an opportunity to meet with the leadership here, I knew, ‘Man, this is the place I want to be.’ And then it was up to them to see if they wanted me,” Satter eld said. “When that happened, it was go time.”
He added that the city of Cincinnati’s reputation for being a sports haven contributed to his decision.
“I know this city is an outstanding city for football and for sports,” Satter eld said. “I was driving in, I was watching the Bengals play [on Dec. 4], and it was awesome. To be able to live right here and be able to go there [to an NFL game], I’ve never had that opportunity.”
Satter eld joins Cincinnati after Fickell had built up UC’s football program and became the winningest coach in the school’s history. Fickell signed with Cincinnati after the season’s end in 2016, compiling a 57-18 record over six years. e team went undefeated in the regular 2021 season and became the rst non-Power Five conference team to go to the College Football Playo .
Satter eld said he’s not worried about comparing his legacy with that of Fickell, who departed on Nov. 27.
“I’ve done that before. Coach [Jerry] Moore was the winningest head coach at Appalachian State. It’s a challenge, right? Everybody expects you to come in and pick up where they left o ,” Satter eld said. “But I’m not Luke Fickell. I’m going to be Scott Satter eld, and I’m going to do the things that I think we need to do to be successful.I have a ton of respect for Luke; what he did here was tremendous. Unbelievable job.”
New University of Cincinnati head football coach Scott Satter eld accepts a Bearcats jersey from athletics director John Cunningham. PHOTO: youtube.com/cincinnatibearcats
A coaching investment
Pending university board approval, Satter eld has a six-year deal with UC that will pay him $3.4 million the rst year; he’ll also receive an annual $100,000 raise. at total compensation is less than Fickell’s most recent contract before he left Cincinnati, which netted Fickell $5 million per year. Fickell now has a seven-year deal with Wisconsin that starts at $7.5 million per year with room for additional compensation for hitting performance and postseason milestones.
As of press time, Satter eld hasn’t had a chance to size up the team’s current commitments and roster because his rst priority is putting together his coaching sta . But players still have been dropping by.
“ e one thing I told them we were going to do is surround them with some coaches and men who are going to help mentor them, that are going to pour into them, that are going to love them, that are going to hold them accountable every day,” Satter eld said. is year, Cincinnati raised the assistant coach salary pool to $7.25 million – the university’s highest investment in football. Satter eld said that he’d asked for a large pool, “but quite frankly, I didn’t have to ask for it. As I’ve said before, the administration here wants to be good at football, and they know you have to invest in it. For me, that’s one of the big reasons I wanted to be here.” e Bearcats are 9-3 this season with a 6-2 conference record, good for third in the American Athletic Conference. e team is gearing up to move to the Big 12, a hefty change that Satter eld will lead. e new investment in the coaching sta will help with that, Satter eld said.
“We certainly have to continue to invest in our program. We have to. Now we’re going to the Power 5 level in the Big 12, and we’re going to have to continue to get some of the top coaches in the country,” the new head coach said. “It’s a very competitive landscape, and if we want to continue to try to get those kinds of coaches, guys [have got to] be compensated.”
Satter eld said that in addition to sizing up the coaching sta , he’s focused on recruiting new players and rming up commitments with current ones. He plans to use Greater Cincinnati as his farm system, he said.
“Cincinnati high school football is unbelievable, and so is the state of Ohio; it’s one of the best states in the whole country [for football],” Satter eld said. “We’ve got to stake down this area right here, we’ve got to call on these high schools, we’ve got to hire people on this sta that will go out who already have those relationships. at’s going to be a top priority for us.”
e Wasabi Fenway Bowl
Cincinnati and Louisville will square o in the Wasabi Fenway Bowl in Boston on Dec. 17, so Satter eld’s sudden move to rival UC came as a surprise to many college football experts. Satter eld said that he would not participate in any bowl programming.
“ is is kind of a weird situation, right? I mean, Louisville’s playing Cincinnati in a bowl game,” Satter eld said. “I told both teams that I’m removing myself from [the bowl game]. I won’t be there. I’m not going to be in that situation. My whole focus right now is putting together a sta and recruiting.” He added that he wanted to “surround [players] with the best coaching sta in the country.”
Satter eld said the Wasabi Fenway Bowl game will be led by Kerry Coombs, UC’s cornerback and special teams coordinator who has served as interim coach since Fickell’s departure.
For years, Cincinnati and Louisville had faced each other across di erent conferences in a rivalry called “Keg of Nails.” e teams haven’t battled since before Louisville began playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2014. e Wasabi Fenway Bowl will be the rst college football game ever played at Fenway, according to media materials.
Cincinnati Bengals Waive, Re-Sign Kevin Huber, Team’s Longtime Heart
BY ALLISON BABKA
Cincinnati’s hometown hero is still here. e Cincinnati Bengals signed veteran punter Kevin Huber to its practice squad on Dec. 7, just two days after waiving him.
After Huber’s slow start to the season, the Bengals had released the longtimer, opting instead to keep newbie Drue Chrisman at the punter position. Other teams had the opportunity to scoop Huber up before the Bengals re-signed him to what essentially was Chrisman’s practice squad spot.
Huber has spent 14 seasons with the Bengals and is a Cincinnati lifer in every sense of the word.
“Kevin was our punter for a very long time,” Bengals president Mike Brown had said upon waiving Huber. “We appreciated every moment he was here. He has been a steadying force for us, an excellent player and a good person. Any football team would be blessed to have him for the length of time we did.”
Huber owns the team record for games played at 216, including 38 consecutive games from 2014 to 2022, the Bengals said. He also leads the franchise in total punts (1011), punting yards (45,766), gross average (45.27), net average (40.34) and punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line (346).
Longtime Bengals fans know Huber for his dogged support of Cincinnati, both the region and the football team. He’s as homegrown as they come, having been raised in Anderson and attending the University of Cincinnati, where he became a erce punter as well as rst-team All American in 2007 and 2008. e Bengals drafted Huber in 2009 in the fth round, and he hadn’t let the team – or the city – down since.
Just days before the Bengals went to the AFC divisional battle that led them to a remarkable run at Super Bowl LVI, Huber published a rstperson piece in e Players’ Tribune. Huber’s extensive description of his love for Cincinnati and what it was like to experience his rst playo win (and the team’s rst playo win in 31 years) was deeply personal. A veteran Bengals player as well as a longtime fan who had su ered through so many losses, Huber gave the city hope that this team was the one that would go all the way. He wrote:
Bengals punter Kevin Huber
PHOTO: ALL PRO REELS, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
When Germaine picked that ball o to end the game last week, I started looking into the crowd. e noise was incredible. e excitement was contagious. I’d never seen Paul Brown Stadium like that — I’d never heard it like that. It was just so pure. And as I looked around, I saw fans throwing their arms in the air, jumping up and down and screaming their heads o . But for every one of them, there was a fan with their hands on their head, staring into the distance with just a smile on their face.
And I knew exactly what they were feeling.
Relief.
Huber ended his tale in the Tribune with even more hope, tying together the decades of loss with the newfound optimism and pointing out the fans who have been along for the long, long ride:
And that win against the Raiders? at was just the rst step. If you’re from here, if you bleed orange and black — you know what that win really meant. You felt it deep in your soul. Because you’ve been here for the heartbreak, same as I have. When Germaine ran back to the sideline after the pick last Saturday, I looked at Coach Simmons, who’s been with us since 2003, and he looked at me…. And there was only one thing to say: “Finally.”
e Bengals delighted the city with its miraculous Super Bowl journey, coming mere minutes away from winning it all in February but ultimately losing 23-20 to the Los Angeles Rams.
