Commemorating the 30th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, about 150
demonstrators gathered in front of the Wilshire Federal Building
Wednesday evening to send a clear message to President Bush:
Don’t overturn the right to choose.
“We must remain strong and outspoken on this issue,”
said Congresswoman Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles, the keynote
speaker at the event. “The rights of millions of women are at
stake.”
The predominantly female crowd loudly agreed. Gathered in front
of the Federal Building and holding signs and candles, they staged
an hour-long vigil, listening to speeches from community leaders
and declaring their support for the abortion-rights movement.
“We really want the federal government to hear our
voice,” said Martha Swiller, vice president of public affairs
at Planned Parenthood in Los Angeles and one of the event’s
organizers.
The Rev. Sharon Wickett of the United Methodist Church, who gave
the benediction afterward, told a story about her college days,
when a woman had to go to Mexico to have an abortion under
unsanitary conditions.
“I don’t want to go back to those days,” she
said.
But it was Waters, a traditional opponent of the Bush
administration, who drew the most attention and applause.
“I believe that President Bush is drunk with power,”
she said, comparing Bush’s conservative agenda to the
suppressive regime of the Taliban.
“You go fight the Taliban, don’t become the
Taliban,” she said.
The vigil in Westwood was part of a series of demonstrations
around the nation. In Washington, D.C., abortion-rights groups and
anti-abortion groups held competing candlelight vigils in front of
the Supreme Court.
Beneath the show of support, however, was an undercurrent of
anxiety. The looming retirement of Justice Sandra Day
O’Connor and Chief Justice William Rehnquist would allow Bush
to appoint his own judges to fill their posts.
Conservative control of the Supreme Court could overturn or at
least weaken Roe v. Wade, and Bush has already signalled he would
move in that direction.
“˜”˜I think the practical and the possible is a ban on
a particularly gruesome procedure, partial birth abortion,”
said Karl Rove, Bush’s chief political advisor.
“It’s been in the most danger it’s ever been
in,” acknowledged Swiller. “We will lose it unless
Americans stand up and protect the rights that we’ve been
accustomed to.”
Elana Konstant, a third-year law student at UCLA, attended the
demonstration and said she came to celebrate a key anniversary in
the abortion-rights movement.
“It’s really important to tell people how great this
law really is,” she said. “People take it for
granted.”
But Konstant, a part-time volunteer with Planned Parenthood,
also expressed concern that the law is facing tough times
ahead.
“Right now, it’s being undermined incrementally, and
people don’t notice,” she said.
Francesca Cimino, a second-year medical student at USC, said it
was important for people to stand up for the abortion-rights
movement.
“Women before us fought a long time for this right, and I
feel it’s my job to make sure I fight for it,” she
said.
Although the crowd consisted mostly of adults, Waters stressed
the importance of student involvement in the movement.
“It is the students who really have the voting power to
change the direction of this country,” she said.