Walk for Choice 2011 rallies are being planned across the country and in other parts of the world for February 26, 2011 as a sign of protest against Congressional bill H.R. 3: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act. Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Boston, Minneapolis, Alaska, Pakistan and the U.K. are all hosting rallies.
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) introduced the bill. I have seen him speak very vehemently about his anti-choice stance on TV, and found him to be quite the extremist.
Raven Geary, a pro-choice activist, immediately began organizing an event in Chicago upon hearing of this bill. Soon, she started receiving tons of support from people who wanted to do similar events. In Chicago the protest will be taking place from 12-3 p.m.
Mohini Lai, an event organizer for Chicago's Walk for Choice, said that H.R. 3 is a threat to a woman’s bodily autonomy. I wonder if Rep. Smith would appreciate any sort of threat to his bodily autonomy? What’s good for the goose is definitely not good for the gander.
Lai said, “The environment of political speech right now is dangerous for women. Women are adults and should be treated as nothing less, but the current actions of Congress threaten individual autonomy on more than a medical level.”
Geary said that the Republicans should be concentrating on their promises, namely job creation. Geary pointed out that there are high levels of unemployment, and therefore, this very urgent economic issue should be the focus of attention. But the attention somehow got focused on abortion. It does seem to be an obsession for those who wish to curtail abortion services.
“While most Americans are demanding jobs, the GOP seems to have made overturning Roe v. Wade its top priority,” Geary said. She went on to point out that the power of social networking is being used for the purpose of organizing demonstrations around the world.
In sum, Walk for Choice rallies arose as a direct result of H.R. 3. The demonstrations constitute a protest against efforts being made to curtail a woman’s reproductive choice, as well as the right to a safe and legal abortion.
Source: Online Press Release from Walk for Choice 2011.