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Women's March Cleveland 2020 organizer Kathy Wray Coleman, a key organizer of the annual women's march in Cleveland since 2018, called for the Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals to deny the motion by attorneys of Cleveland serial killer Anthony Sowell for a new appeal at the fourth annual event on Sat, Jan 18, 2020 on the steps of Cleveland City Hall.
Some 400 people attended the event, which began with speeches on the steps of City Hall and culminated in a march through the streets of downtown Cleveland to Public Square.
Sowell murdered 11 Black women at his since demolished home on Imperial Avenue on Cleveland east side and was convicted in 2011 on 82 of 83 counts including 11 counts of aggravated murder and three counts of rape regarding three women who escaped his wrath.
After losing all appeals and failing to convince the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case, his new attorneys have filed a motion in the 8th District Court of Appeals demanding a new appeal and saying his trial court and appellate attorneys were inept for failing to demand a brain scan at the trial court level while his then appeals court attorneys did not allege ineffective assistance of counsel by his trial court lawyers on appeal.
"We demand that the three-judge panel of the Ohio 8th District court of appeals, Judges Eileen Gallagher, Patricia Ann Blackmon and Larry Jones, deny serial killer Anthony Sowell's motion for a new appeal and send him on his way," said Coleman, who also leads the Imperial Women Coalition, the grassroots women's rights group founded relative to the unprecedented murders.
Coleman said that "Other than Spectrum News 1, Cleveland's racist mainstream media chose to feature men and Whites in their television and newspaper coverage instead of black organizers and would not effectively address the serial murders of Black women, even though Sowell and his attorney are currently seeking a new appeal in the 8th District Court of Appeals."
"Cleveland's racist mainstream media will snub Blacks just like the Oscars do," Coleman said.
As to Saturday's rally and march in Cleveland, Cleveland Channel 5 News interviewed a White man and White woman, and Channel 19 News coverage promoted Whites and men, Coleman said.
This too is a regular thing for them relative to the annual women's march, said Coleman, if they cover the event at all.
And Cleveland Fox 8 News will push a Black who had nothing to do with organizing the event to undermine Black organizers.
This year, however, the conservative television station just simply featured Whites in covering the event, Coleman said.
Women in greater Cleveland joined women across the globe and nationally on Jan 18 for the annual march, which began in 2017 following the inauguration of President Trump, who dogged women during his 2016 campaign for president against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, the first woman Democratic nominee of a major American political party.
Marches were also held in the Ohio cities of Akron, Delaware, Cincinnati, Canton and Dayton.
In 2017 millions of United States women took to the streets in their fight for women and even today Women's March is one of the few groups remaining among some 32 that took on Trump since his inauguration three-years-ago, including the tax march, the march for science, and the families belong together march.
The non-partisan anniversary event in Cleveland featured Cleveland Rape Crisis Center President and CEO Sondra Miller, state Rep Juanita Brent of Cleveland and the Rev Tony Minor as keynote speakers, and state Sen Nickie Antonio of Lakewood as the opening speaker.
Cleveland Councilmen Matt Zone and Joe Jones also spoke, and Zone announced that he will soon introduce an ordinance for a safe leave policy for paid leave from work were needed for victims of domestic violence and abuse.
Some 20 greater Cleveland activist groups participated and activists were also be among the speakers. Those groups, or group members, included Black on Black Crime Inc., Imperial Women Coalition, National Congress of Black Women Cleveland Chapter, Black Lives Matter, Greater Cleveland Independent Black Journalist, International Women's Day March Cleveland, League of Women Voters, Greater Cleveland Immigrant Support Network, Move to Amend, Peace Action, Women Speak Out for Peace and Justice, Carl Stokes Brigade, National Congress of Black Women, BEMAD, Protecting Our Children's Safety, Refuse Fascism Ohio, Northeast Ohio Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign, Organize Ohio, Badass Teachers, Coalition to Stop the Inhumanity in the Cuyahoga County Jail, Action Together Lakewood, Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus, Stop Targeting Ohio's Poor, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio, Black Man's Army, and the Black Women's PAC of Greater Cleveland.
The issues at the rally at City Hall ranged from the policies out of Washington, D.C. and civil, voting and reproductive rights to education, racism, sexism, climate change, equal pay, jobs, taxes, immigration and religious and other bigotry.
Rally speakers also addressed healthcare, violence against women, criminal justice reform, excessive force, science and technology, and the LGBTQ community, among a host of other concerns.
