Al Sharpton leads pro-DEI 'March on Wall Street' on anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington

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NEW YORK (AP) — The Rev. Al Sharpton led a protest march Thursday through Manhattan's Financial District to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

The New York civil rights leader was joined by clergy, labor and community leaders in a demonstration dubbed the “March on Wall Street” that was timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963.

“We come to Wall Street rather than Washington this year to let them know: you can try to turn back the clock, but you can’t turn back time," Sharpton said as he kicked off the 45-minute march, adding they were going to “keep the dream alive on Wall Street.”

Among the march participants was Jonathan Garde, of Lithonia, Georgia, who came in part to show “DEI is much needed in our society today because it promotes fairer and more inclusive work environments, which are essential for business success, innovation, and social progress.”

Since returning to the White House in January, President Donald Trump has moved to end DEI programs within the federal government and warned schools to do the same or risk losing federal money.

In response, Sharpton's civil rights group, the National Action Network, has encouraged consumers to avoid U.S. retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity among their employees and reducing discrimination against members of minority groups, women and LGBTQ+ people.

Earlier this year, Sharpton met with Target’s CEO as groups called for a boycott of the retail giant, which joined Amazon, Walmart and other major retailers in foregoing DEI initiatives.

The civil rights leader has also called for "buy-cotts” in support of companies such as Costco that have stuck by their DEI principles despite the conservative backlash.

“Corporate America wants to walk away from Black communities, so we are marching to them to bring this fight to their doorstep,” Sharpton said in a statement ahead of Thursday's march.

The event began in Foley Square, near the African Burial Ground that's the largest known resting place of enslaved and freed Africans in the country. The square is also near 26 Federal Plaza, the federal government building that's become a symbol of Trump's nationwide immigration crackdown, with agents detaining migrants during their routine appearances at the immigration court located there.

The group marched down a section of Broadway known as the “Canyon of Heroes,” famous for its ticker tape parades, and went past the corner of Wall Street itself — though it did not turn down the famed street where the New York Stock Exchange is located.

Among those marching was state Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate in the upcoming New York City mayoral race.

Sharpton told the crowd he had invited New York City mayoral candidates — including Mamdani, incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo — to take part in the march, then derisively noted the latter two were not at the event.

“I don’t endorse candidates, but I take attendance,” Sharpton said, drawing laughter from many in the crowd.

Mamdani called on attendees to continue to fight for justice for all and to keep the Rev. Martin Luther King's dream alive, noting "we have heard time and again that it has to be deferred, and yet we know its time has come.”