Protesters decry anti-abortion legislation
STAMFORD — Women, and some men, from across generations filled the plaza of the Stamford Government Center Friday evening to protest the wave of anti-abortion legislation sweeping the country.
Many held signs declaring “We Won’t Go Back,” which is the name of a Stamford-based pro-choice organization that formed Thursday in response to the passage of an Alabama law prohibiting abortion at every stage of pregnancy, even in cases of rape or incest, after a baby’s heartbeat is detected.
Organizers passed out wire hangers to more than 50 protesters in recognition of the objects that many women had used to end pregnancies before the Supreme Court legalized abortion in 1973 in the case of Roe v. Wade.
A common theme prevailed among the protesters: Women should have the power to make their own decisions about their bodies and reproductive health, without interference from politicians.
“I don’t think anybody should choose what’s right for anyone else,” Stamford resident Wendi Hoak said. If politicians want to prevent abortion, they should improve sex education and access to birth control, Hoak said.
“There is no certainty on when life begins, and therefore you have to leave it up to the woman who’s bearing the pregnancy to decide,” Stamford resident Audrey Apfel said.
Protest organizer Shira Tarantino, of Stamford, said she was heartened by the large crowd but scared by the series of new anti-abortion laws passed, such as the one signed into law just the hour before in Missouri criminalizing abortion after eight weeks of pregnancy.
Protester Ann Reed, of Darien, said abortion was illegal when she was in college, and many of her friends had illegal abortions or were forced to carry unwanted pregnancies.
“Now maybe young women will finally realize their rights are threatened,” Reed said.
The young women at the protest said they’re well aware of the threat to abortion and women’s reproductive freedom.
“It’s funny when pro-life people are for the life of an unborn fetus but not the lives of students killed at school to guns,” said Isabella Garcia, a junior at Stamford High School.
Sam Hamilton, founder of the Westhill Feminist Club, is now a freshman at American University. “I’m beginning to see I was naive in thinking the illegalization of abortion was an issue my generation didn’t have to face,” Hamilton said at the rally.
Hamilton called for improved and medically accurate sex education in schools, as well as access to reproductive health care resources for women across all income levels.
The law takes effect in November in Alabama, but it is expected to be challenged in court because it conflicts with Roe v. Wade.
A group of about 10 counter-protesters stood along the sidewalk near the Government Center. “We’re praying for the protection of all life,” said Darien resident MaryAnne Knag, one of the counter-protesters.
At the edge of the protest, Stamford resident Anel Dzafic, one of the dozen or so men in the crowd, entertained his young daughter. “I’m here for her rights and her future,” Dzafic said.
State Reps. Caroline Simmons, D-144, and Matt Blumenthal, D-147, also spoke at the rally, as did state Attorney General William Tong.
The law in Alabama would force a woman who was sexually assaulted to deliver her rapist’s baby, Simmons said. “This is sick and unjust and not who we are as a country,” she said.
“This isn’t just a debate about abortion. This is a war on American women and their freedom,” Tong said.
Danielle Eason, a board member of Planned Parenthood Votes CT, said abortion is a medical decision that should be a woman’s choice. “Reproductive health care is health care — and health care is a human right,” Eason said.