Images From the 2019 Cincinnati Women's March

A crowd of a few hundred braved the cold rain to gather under the Purple People Bridge at Sawyer Point for a last-minute rally and march to protest for women’s rights. Cincinnati Socialist Alternative, Democratic Socialists of America Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky and the local chapter of the International Socialist Organization organized the event in about a week after orgranizers with the Ohio Women’s March chapter announced an event they were planning would be cancelled for logistics and financial reasons. The Women’s March started in 2017 to protest the inauguration of President Donald Trump and drew thousands of people locally. While this year’s event was smaller than those in the past two years, it was high energy, and speakers from all three organizations had plenty to talk about, from national issues like the wage gap between men and women and recent and ongoing teacher’s union strikes in Los Angeles, Kentucky and elsewhere to local issues like Cincinnati’s battle over tent cities for those experiencing homelessness this summer and proposed deregulation of Ohio River pollution controls by multi-state commission ORSANCO. After remarks from organizers, attendees joined a march through the southern portion of downtown, chanting and carrying rain-soaked signs. “It’s been two years since Trump was elected,” ISO organizer Ashley Theissen said. “These have been two years of attacks on everyone in this country except for the ruling class. He’s gone after the last remaining shreds of the safety nets that protect the working class. He has slashed environmental regulations that protect our water and air. He has banned countless Muslims and refugees from entering our country. He’s attacked LGBTQ people and Title IX protections. These attacks are all a part of a larger strategy to divide and conquer us. We must understand that strategy and build robust democratic movements that fight back against their violence and exploitation. It’s been two years since Trump was inaugurated, and they’ve been two years of struggle and resistance.”