ON THE STREETS: Protesters downtown demand protection for abortion rights

Karen Sullivan, a former abortion clinic employee who attended an abortion-rights rally in downtown Chicago on Tuesday, remembered a time when women came to Chicago from other states and countries to get an abortion.

“States like Illinois really need to maintain their strong stance in favor of abortion so we can continue to be this beacon,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan was among Chicagoans who joined many across the country in rallying for abortion rights Tuesday after a leaked draft of a Supreme Court decision — published by Politico on Monday night — signaled that the high court would soon overturn Roe v. Wade, heavily restricting access to abortion.

The downtown rally drew more than 100 people from local groups like Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights, Socialist Alternative and Chicago for Abortion Rights at Federal Plaza.

Protesters held signs that read “Forced motherhood is female enslavement” and “Abortion on demand and without apology” as speakers addressed the crowd and some passing cars honked in support.

The leaked draft has some activists and residents worried about further restrictions, like access to birth control, the right to gay marriage and freedoms for transgender and nonbinary people.

“Living in Illinois is a blessing, but I don’t feel completely safe here. I know that one day I might not be able to leave this state ever,” said Simon Smith, a transgender student at DePaul University.

He said access to abortion is important for everyone, not only cisgender women.

“A lot of people wouldn’t look at me and think I have a uterus, but I do,” he said while addressing the crowd.

Jay Becker, an organizer with refusefascism.org, remembered a time before the Roe decision came down.

“Every woman my age has a story,” she said, recalling a friend who got an illegal abortion in the late 1960s and “barely survived.”