Crowds in Cincinnati and Middletown turned out to celebrate International Workers Day Thursday, using the opportunity to criticize the polices of the Trump administration.
A group of about 200 rallied in Cincinnati's Washington Park, where labor leaders and activists spoke for about two hours.
The event focused on the impact Trump's policies will have on local workers. Greater Cincinnati Building and Construction Trades Council Executive Secretary Jimmy Hyden told the crowd Trump’s tariffs — including a 145% tariff on most goods from China — could endanger the long-awaited Brent Spence Bridge project.
"This is personal, it's local," he said. "This comes down to jacking the prices up on materials that we need to build these things. Not only that, but the materials and things we need to live and survive every day. When costs explode like that, jobs get canceled."
Trump has repeatedly defended the tariffs, saying other countries' trade practices are unfair and take advantage of the U.S. Raising tariffs on them improves America's bargaining power and will help reshore manufacturing jobs, he says. The president has at times withdrawn some of the tariffs or lowered them when the U.S. wins concessions from countries like Canada and China.
Other speakers highlighted Trump administration policies they said were hostile to LGBTQ workers, immigrants and other marginalized groups.
Speaking in Spanish, local worker Jorge Lopez told the crowd through an interpreter that Trump's actions deporting immigrants to El Salvador are unjust, and will hurt the U.S.
"As workers, we're part of the community," he said to big cheers. "We're also parents. We're not criminals. We're just here to work. We're being attacked by the current administration, who just want us to be part of their statistics."
'A lot of people aren't paying attention'
Later in the evening and 30 miles north, about 40 people in Vice President JD Vance's hometown held their own May Day rally. Middletown resident Constance Miller helped organize it. She said the aim was to support workers while also pushing back on Trump and Vance's policies.
"Middletown is a working-class city," she said. "As you can see, we have a huge steel mill. It feeds our town. If they continue with these tariffs and these attacks on the workers and their pensions and their pay and their rights, we're not going to have much of a town left."
Miller said it’s important to show people that not everyone here is on board with Trump and Vance's agenda.
William Wagner, who lives nearby in Wayne Township, was one of the protesters. He said he came out mostly to inform people about what he sees as dangers to American democracy posed by Trump’s disregard for due process and court orders. A retired defense industry worker, he also expressed deep concern about Trump's foreign policy.
Rally-goers lined up along busy Roosevelt Boulevard with signs saying things like, "Help the poor, not the rich" and "Hands off democracy." Drivers greeted them with supportive waves and honks — and also the occasional jeer and curse word.
Wagner was careful to stress that he didn't believe the event was an attempt to be divisive.
"We've been in this area our whole lives," he said. "There are a lot of good people here. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who just aren't paying attention."
Organizers with anti-Trump group 50501 also planned rallies in Dayton, Loveland, Mason, Oxford, Covington, Kentucky, and other cities across the region.
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