Hundreds of activists from
across the state converged on the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus Jan. 8, to
protest Governor-elect Kasich’s proposed plans. Kasich, a former managing
director of Lehman Brothers and Fox News Channel host, has wasted no time in
unveiling his plans for Ohio. His proposed budget includes cuts in education
and health care, while cutting taxes for banks and corporations. Kasich has
also stated that he will waste no time in pushing labor unions aside that
demand higher wages.
Activists braved freezing
weather and snow to demand an end to Kasich’s policies. The demonstration was
organized by the Defend Ohio Campaign and was attended by the Ohio Student
Environmental Coalition, the Ohio Green Party, Westerville Progressive
Alliance, Progress Ohio as well as organizers of the ANSWER Coalition, Party
for Socialism and Liberation and many other sponsoring organizations. Demonstrators
demanded that Kasich put a stop to his anti-worker policies with vehement
chants of “Kasich says cut back, we say fight back!”
Many progressives in Ohio were
disheartened by Kasich’s election, due to his reactionary plan of cuts in
education and healthcare and attacks on union. His election was a result of
former Democratic Governor Ted Strickland’s widespread unpopularity.
Signs held by ANSWER Coalition
organizers and supporters stated “Kasich: Anti-worker, Pro-Wall Street!” and
“We Need Jobs and Schools, Not War!” Members of the Party for Socialism and
Liberation distributed hundreds of fliers for an upcoming public meeting about
what a socialist government would look like, and discussed the need for a
revolutionary alternative. For many of the progressives at the rally, it was
the first time they had heard of socialism as a real alternative as opposed to
the media’s demonized portrayal of socialism.
This demonstration marked the
beginning of the movement growing to fight back against Governor-elect Kasich’s
reactionary plans for Ohio. The working and oppressed peoples of Ohio will
continue to mobilize against Kasich and all those who oppose them. Money for
jobs and education, not for banks and corporations!
