Mon 9/6
Almost 50 years ago, Congressman Louis Stokes launched the east-side Labor Day Parade, a tradition continued by his successors, Stephanie Tubbs Jones and Marcia Fudge. Currently that seat is empty due to Fudge’s elevation to President Biden’s cabinet. But the 11th Congressional District Community Caucus, volunteers who he helped organize previous parades, sprang into action and in less than a month, put together a parade for this year. It wasn’t as grand in scope as previous years, featuring mostly elected officials and candidates, and many elements such as high school bands due to the pandemic (The post-parade marketplace in the parade terminus, Luke Easter Park, was cancelled for the same reason, although a handful of vendors set up anyway and some food trucks showed up to feed the crowd).
The district’s overwhelmingly likely next congresswoman, Shontel Brown, was the parade’s Grand Marshall and introduced the delegations and candidates from the reviewing stand. Her Republican opponent Laverne Gore had a unit in the parade, and both Democratic candidates for governor, Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley and Cincinnati mayor John Cranley, marched. Outgoing Cleveland mayor Frank Jackson brought a group of supporters to thank Cleveland for backing him for four terms, and six of the seven candidates running to replace him vied to be conspicuous (If Ross DiBello was there, I missed him).
View the PHOTOSTREAM here.
