I hope I saw you today at the state capitol. Georgia's pro-choice community showed its strength again at the annual Walk for Women's Lives. Everyone who was there made a difference.
Rumors had been swirling about a large enemy turnout, but our marchers met with only token resistance. It was a pathetic showing for the anti-choicers, who managed to dredge only a handful of counterprotestors from their cesspools to pelt our people with pictures of fetuses and the usual "abortion kills children" patriarchist rhetoric. It remains amazing to me that the bloviating of men in suits continues to seduce women away from our ideal of self-empowerment.
I think our own turnout was somewhat better than last year. In any case it was a splendid day, and the steps of the capitol were a more inviting venue than the Methodist church was last year. Better planning let us march on the street this time, bringing our voice and presence to many passers-by.
I was highly disappointed that neither Mark nor Cathy could see fit to attend or even to send their people in today. For two people locked in mortal combat for the right to face Sonny Perdue in November, the disdain they showed to a large contingent of primary voters was profoundly sad. Apparently they have either decided to forego working from their base, or that pro-choice voters are not their base. It's cowardice that doesn't befit anyone with a D next to their name.
It's worth noting that not all our state candidates behaved so ignobly. Both Jim Martin and Greg Hecht strode fearlessly onto the battlefield today, and I am delighted that our nominee will be willing to ram Ralph Reed's Christian Taliban screeds down his throat. The danger presented by Ralph Reed can hardly be overestimated, but he is mistaken if he thinks he can turn Georgia into South Dakota.
Down the ballot, Representatives Steve Henson, Alisha Thomas Morgan, Nan Orrock, Sheila Jones, “Able” Mable Thomas, and others showed that the banner of choice has not been abandoned under the Gold Dome. The voice of choice is loud in Georgia. Can you hear us, Sadie Fields?
5 Comments:
I loved the coat hanger sign. Pretty good turnout. And the pre-march mimosas helped :>
It's late and my brain is fried, so rather than make a coherent contribution, I am going to share a few of my favorite highlights from Atl Progressive News' coverage of the event, 'cause I'm obnoxious like that.
“Up with animals, yeah yeah! Down with evil, boom boom!” shouted one organizer.
What the hell is that about? Were they at the right protest, or is there a beaver joke in here somewhere?
“I think it’s important to show support for freedoms that have been lost,” Hecht told Atlanta Progressive News.
Suddenly I'm watching When Harry Met Sally. "Does that mean we should forget old acquaintances, or does it mean if we happen to forget them we should remember them, which is not possible because we already forgot them?"
“This is a great event. It’s important people stand up and say Roe v. Wade is a good balance between the rights of government and the rights of the individual,” [Jim] Martin said.
The government has rights? I thought it had obligations. Where's our blog-resident legal analyst Richard?
A contingent of 12 activists came from Rome, Georgia, Jill Crunkleton said
Winner of the Best Surname 2006 Contest.
“I’m here to stand for my rights as well as all other women. This is not just about abortion but about privacy issues in general,” Nikema Williams, a teacher with Atlanta Public Schools, and a member of the Young Democrats of Atlanta, said.
MAD PROPS!
But to end on a serious note, as one of our resident Catholics, I have to reiterate our tactical error: as long as our party faithful broadly characterize the pro-life movement -- however vitriolic their extremists may be -- as being dredged from cesspools and dismiss their "abortion kills children" as "patriarchist rhetoric," we're not going to gain ground. I cringe every time I hear the "Don't like abortion? Don't have one!" refrain as if it's the sum total of the issue. We can't dismiss the pro-life camp as old white men in suits who just hate vaginas b/c they don't get enough of them, because for many if not most of our counterprotestors, they really do believe down to their guts that an abortion is killing a human life. If Dems keep dismissing that, then we're what's the matter with Kansas.
Well, obviously I wasn't writing a piece of campaign literature :-) (Apologies to my pro-life friends, only the really vicious people live in cesspools!)
I must say that most of the chants were pretty lame. They needed some good labor organizers to come up with catchy phrases. My personal favorite was "Pro-life? That's a Lie! You don't care if women Die!"
To be honest, I think a lot of the pro-life movement has more to do about imposing your own morals and values on others than any sort of racial or religious demographic, although there's certainly a large group of old white men who don't like RvW. True, the chants were lame (that was also my favorite, Jason.) But I think the point is that people showed up and stood up for what they believe in, and that's admirable and takes guts no matter how terrible some of their tactics were. On a personal level, I don't know that I could get an abortion ; I've known friends who've had them and been worse, not better, emotionally after the procedure. But I do not think it is the government's place in any way, shape, or form, to pass legislation making it illegal, and I'll stand up for that in a second. Abortion is a nasty topic, and guess what... just like prostitution, it's gone on for thousands of years. It will go on even if it's illegal, and it will be the poor who suffer. Republicans spout this pro-Life rhetoric claiming morality, but they don't want to help feed or educate these kids once they're born. They don't want to address the issue of the massive issue of poverty in this country (the majority of people who get abortions are poor, minorities, and young) or the issue of sex education. But I digress. In other words, I wasn't embarassed to be there. I was glad so many people showed up to stand up for something that is an unpleasant, but extremely important topic.
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