Hundreds of rain-drenched high school and college students demonstrated at Fountain Square Thursday to support affirmative action in college admissions.

Several hundred people assembled at the University of Cincinnati and marched downtown Thursday, where they attended an affirmative action rally. (Dick Swaim photo) | ZOOM |

        A steady rain didn't discourage participants from Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky from rallying less than a block from the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. The students — some wearing ponchos and makeshift raincoats made out of garbage bags — marched from the University of Cincinnati campus down Vine Street, toting umbrellas and signs promoting affirmative action.

        The rally was timed for the beginning of an appeals court hearing on two consolidated cases that challenge University of Michigan admissions practices.

        “This rally is all about taking a stance and showing that we will fight for equality, not only in education, but in our society as a whole,” said Robert Richardson, UC's student government president and founder of its NAACP youth chapter. “We as youth leaders decided it was time for us to stand up and be counted and push America to live up to the ideals that it claims to stand for.”

        The Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, who marched with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and fought Bull Connor in Birmingham, Ala., during the 1960s, urged the students to “fight like hell until we win.”

A UC student delivers a message during an affirmative action rally at Fountain Square. | ZOOM |

        “You are the young people. It's up to you to decide what kind of country you live in,” he said. “Keep your eyes on the prize.”

        The appeals court postponed the hearing originally scheduled in October until Thursday so the entire panel of judges could meet.

        The Rev. Jesse Jackson and the Rev. Al Sharpton had been scheduled to speak at the event. However, both were no-shows.

        Activists said they see the affirmative action cases as a critical issue for minorities trying to increase career opportunities and eliminate discrimination. The fact that all nine judges will hear the cases speaks to their importance to American society, said Shanta Driver, national organizer of By Any Means Necessary (BAMN) — a sponsor of the rally.

        This court's decision, Ms. Driver said, will determine whether affirmative action is maintained in the Sixth Circuit, which covers Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.

        BAMN has gathered more than 50,000 signatures on a nationally circulated petition it plans to present to the appellate court.

        Jeff Johnson, national director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Youth and College Division added: “It is fitting to have this rally here in Cincinnati today. For so often over the last two to five years, we've seen the dreams of young people die at the hands of Cincinnati police and city council.

        “But affirmative action will not die on the streets of Cincinnati today,” Mr. Johnson said. “The rain can't turn us back. The police can't turn us back. And no court can turn us back.”

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