ROE V WADE 53RD ANNIVERSARY: Ohio Congresswoman Emilia Sykes, Women's March Cleveland activists, vow to continue fight for reproductive rights on Roe. v. Wade anniversary...By Clevelandurbannews.com, Ohio's Black digital news leader

Ohio 13th Congressional District Congresswoman Emilia Sykes (D-13), an Akron Democrat

Above: Women's March Cleveland on Oct. 2, 2021 at a march from Market Square Park in Cleveland that drew some 2,500 people. Photo by David Petkiewicz of Cleveland.com

U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes reaffirms her fight for reproductive freedom on the Roe v. Wade anniversary  date, and so do community activist women of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio

 

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes (OH-13), an Akron Democrat and one of three Black women in Congress from Ohio, released a statement on the 53rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, highlighting ongoing threats to reproductive rights in Ohio and across the nation.

“Roe v. Wade protected generations of women's right to make personal medical decisions for years," said Congresswoman Sykes. "When it was overturned in 2022, fundamental rights were stripped away, and nearly four years later, women in Ohio and across the country are still under attack."

Cleveland activist and organizer Kathy Wray Coleman, who leads Women's March Cleveland, said the fight for reproductive rights for women in Cleveland and Northeast Ohio is exhausting, and that her group appreciates elected officials like Rep. Sykes who speak out on the federal level. 

"Every voice of reason helps," said Coleman, "Congresswoman Sykes has shown repeatedly that she will fight for women's rights, and activist women of Northeast Ohio stand with her on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade."

Women's March Cleveland usually holds an annual anniversary march in January, but frigid temperatures derailed it this year, Coleman said. Instead, women in Cleveland will rally and march on Sun, March 8, 2026, for International Women's Day from 2pm-4pm at Market Square Park near downtown Cleveland. 

ROE V. WADE

The Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision, which established a federal right to abortion, is Jan. 22, 1973, making Jan. 22 each year a significant date, though it is now marked by reflection on its overturning in 2022 by the Dobbs decision, which returned abortion law to the states. Today, Jan. 22, 2026, marks the 53rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, serving as a day for advocates to push for reproductive rights against the backdrop of GOP intimidation.  In November 2023, Ohio voters, after campaigning by activists, approved a state ballot amendment (Issue 1) that enshrined the legal right to abortion access in the Ohio Constitution. Still, Republican state legislators in Ohio are pushing for policy legislation to counter that win. 

"Even after Ohio voters enshrined reproductive freedom in our state constitution in 2023, legal uncertainty remains," said Sykes, who vowed to continue her fight for choice for women.

 

"I have spent my career expanding access to reproductive health care, advancing equity, and strengthening communities," the congresswoman said. "As vice chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus and chair of the Reproductive Justice Task Force, I fight to protect a woman’s right to choose."

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, the most-read Black digital newspaper and blog in Ohio. Tel. 216-659-0473. Email-editor@clevelandurban