Ohio Grass-Roots Anti-Fracking Group Disinvited From Medina County Earth Day Event

A grass-roots anti-fracking group wants to be a part of Medina County’s Earth Day events on April 21, but organizers have told the Concerned Citizens of Medina County they are not welcome. The pulling of the welcome mat has upset the group.

A Medina County committee that oversees the Earth Day festivities says the anti-fracking group is too controversial and too political to be part of the event. This has left the group “shocked and surprised,” said spokeswoman Kathie Jones of Sharon Township. Her group had intended to distribute educational material about hydraulic fracturing or fracking for natural gas, she said.

Earth Day seemed an appropriate venue to present its information to the public, she said. “We intended to be helpful, not harmful,” she said. “We just wanted to educate people. We never thought it would be a problem. … I feel like we are being discriminated against because of the topic.”

Her group had sought approval from a committee of county and local officials involved in organizing Medina County’s 16th annual Earth Day celebration at Hubbard Valley Park in Guilford Township. In an email, committee spokeswoman Shelley Tender said, “At this time, we feel it is too controversial a topic and we do not want to appear as if we are endorsing any one opinion about the issue.”

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http://www.ohio.com/news/local-news/fracking-opponents-unwelcome-at-medina-county-earth-day-events-1.287353