Weeklong anti-abortion campaign coming to city
Organizers estimate anywhere from 400 to 1,500 will take part
The national anti-abortion group Operation Save America plans to “storm the gates of hell in Milwaukee” during its annual weeklong national gathering to end abortion.
The size of the gathering, dubbed “Complete the Work,” is a bit of a guess; organizers estimated anywhere from 400 to 1,500 will take part. About 20 local churches are helping host the gathering.
Starting Saturday, participants head into the community for morning demonstrations, learning about the history of the organization and its leaders, and gather for rallies in the evenings. The learning sessions mostly will be at Grace Community Church on West Beloit Road; the rallies mostly will be at the Zoofari Conference Center on West Bluemound Road.
The group also is tailoring the program to its host state, with field trips to Ripon — birthplace of the Republican Party — and the State Capitol.
Operation Save America is known for its graphic public displays of aborted fetuses and its homophobic and Islamophobic ideals. Leaders tend to use language associated with war and violence.
The Rev. Rusty Thomas, its director, describes the homosexual “agenda” as having fascist elements and ultimately being about “supremacy.” The Rev. Flip Benham, former director, has said Islam is a “monstrous worldview, birthed in the pit of hell.”
The organization’s positions go beyond most mainstream anti-abortion views. The group does not believe abortion is acceptable when rape or incest results in a pregnancy. It also contends there is no such thing as a medically necessary abortion.
“It has been the exceptions — rape, incest and the life of the mother — that has led to abortion on demand,” Thomas said in an interview. “As far as I’m concerned, that door needs to be shut. Period.”
Counter-protesters coming too
Organizations that support abortion rights consider Operation Save America a hate group.
Counter-protests are planned by the Abortion Access Front. At night, AFF will host lighthearted comedy shows and a burlesque show at The Cooperage on South Water Street. They will be followed by teach-ins — events that AFF founder and chief creative officer Lizz Winstead said are intended to spread love, joy and solidarity.
The Abortion Access Front has dubbed OSA’s Milwaukee campaign the “Garbage Fyre Festival” — a reference to Fyre Festival, the sham 2017 music event.
“We were like, ‘You know who else promised a really amazing, transformative experience and then delivered garbage? The Fyre Festival,’” explained Winstead, also the co-creator and former head writer of “The Daily Show” and co-founder of Air America Radio.
The Milwaukee anti-abortion event comes nearly two months after several legislatures passed restrictive abortion laws. Both OSA director Thomas and Milwaukee OSA organizer Jason Storms said politicians are planning to attend its Milwaukee rallies, although no names were given.
“They seem to be influential in bringing their message to politicians, who in turn have been creating really harsh legislation,” Winstead said. “That feels really scary.”
Targeting Planned Parenthood
The group has routinely targeted physicians affiliated with Planned Parenthood and other clinics offering abortion services. Planned Parenthood operates five clinics in the city of Milwaukee; 21 statewide. The organization has long stressed that it not only offers abortion services, but gives women access to birth control, cancer screenings, STD testing and treatment, well-woman exams and miscarriage care. According to Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin: “Deciding to start a family, delay becoming a parent, or ending a pregnancy are some of the most personal decisions a woman makes. This decision must be left to a woman and her health care provider. We believe that every individual’s decision about their pregnancy should be respected and valued — and we are deeply committed to ensuring patients can make their own personal medical decisions in a nonjudgmental environment.”
Thomas refers to the clinics as “death camps” and called upon the next generation to close the remaining Planned Parenthood locations offering abortion services. Protesting outside local Planned Parenthood clinics will be a “big part” of OSA’s upcoming Milwaukee campaign, according to Thomas.
“To the press, we’re domestic terrorists . ... For us, we simply have church and the gates of hell,” Thomas said. “This is where the enemy is killing, stealing and destroying.”
Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Faithe Colas said the department is taking necessary measures to monitor the situation, and they are unaware of any threat to public safety or to the safety of women utilizing Planned Parenthood services as of Tuesday morning.