City Councilwoman Victoria Parks is facing mounting criticism after a comment from her Facebook account appeared to defend a violent attack in downtown Cincinnati last weekend. The backlash erupted after a Facebook user, Leohna Alia La JCannon, posted a video showing a brutal assault on two individuals near the corner of Fourth and Elm Street in the early hours of Saturday morning. In response to the video, a comment linked to Parks’ Facebook account read, “They begged for that beat down!” The comment continued, “I am grateful for the whole story.” The account in question appears to belong to Parks and lists her job title as “City Council Member at City of Cincinnati Government.” It also mentions her past roles as Commissioner at Hamilton County, Ohio Government, and as Chief of Staff to Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune, details that match her official biography on the City of Cincinnati website, the New York Post reported. Cincinnati’s city council operates as a nonpartisan body, but all nine members, including Parks, have been endorsed by the local Democratic party. Parks appears to have at least two other Facebook accounts, one last active in May and another that has not been updated since 2022. The page linked to the controversial comment includes several years of posts, mostly about her professional background. The comment sparked widespread outrage online, with screenshots being circulated rapidly across social media platforms. “Cincinnati Councilwoman Victoria Parks must resign immediately! Defending violent criminals who viciously beat innocent people is disgusting,” Ohio’s 39th District State Representative Phil Plummer posted on X. “Her words ‘They begged for that beat down!’ are outrageous. Prosecutors must charge the attackers with a hate crime. We must protect our streets!” Other posts included strongly worded messages like, “You’re a racist pig, Victoria Parks,” and “THIS IS INSANE!” with several users demanding her resignation. The attack captured in the video shows a group savagely beating two people, including a woman who was knocked unconscious and left lying in the street. The incident took place in Cincinnati’s central business district and has been widely condemned by city residents and officials alike. In her official biography, Parks highlighted her role in “passing Racism as a Public Health Crisis” during her time working with the Hamilton County government. She also claims credit for introducing and passing Juneteenth as a paid holiday for county employees. Parks announced in January that she would not seek reelection and plans to retire at the end of her current term. Cincinnati Fraternal Order of Police President Ken Kober criticised the comment, telling Fox News Digital, “It’s unconscionable that an elected official would be celebrating violence in the very city she was voted to serve.”“This highlights the poor political environment that police officers, residents and visitors are currently enduring. Thankfully, there’s an election in November. I urge voters to vote for change!” the officer further added. Parks has not responded to multiple requests for comment. Mollie Lair, Communications Director for the Cincinnati City Manager’s Office, confirmed she viewed the Facebook post in person at City Hall but declined to comment.
