More than 60 people gathered outside the state courthouse in Riverhead Tuesday to rally in support of a woman’s right to an abortion, after news broke Monday night that a conservative U.S. Supreme Court majority intends to overturn decades-old landmark court decisions that protect the right.
People gathered on the steps of the courthouse around 5 p.m., where they held signs bearing messages such as “Abortion is Health Care,” “Women’s Bodies Women’s Choice,” “Protect Safe, Legal Abortion,” and “Codify Roe,” referring to nearly 50-year-old U.S. Supreme Court decision currently being challenged in litigation over a Mississippi law banning abortions after 15 weeks, with limited exceptions.
The news website Politico obtained a draft majority opinion written in February by Associate Justice Samuel Alito overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision of the high court, and its subsequent 1992 decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The Constitution does not guarantee the right to an abortion, Alito wrote, and the legality of abortion must be decided by state legislatures.
Pro-choice demonstrations took place across the nation Tuesday evening.
The crowd in Riverhead chanted “Women’s rights under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!” and “Hey hey, ho ho, your backwards views have got to go!” People passed around a megaphone and spoke to the crowd about the importance of the right protected by the Roe decision.
“This is a very solemn and frightening moment in our history,” said Suffolk County Legislator and Democratic congressional candidate Bridget Fleming.
“No judge, no politician, no ban should ever block our personal medical decisions or set the course for a woman’s life. Abortion access must not be based on your zip code, or your income, or the color of your skin,” Fleming said.
The demonstrators called on federal officials to codify the right to abortion in federal law, arguing that if the court strikes Roe, there will be no federal protection for the right.
“I think it’s kind of appalling that women are losing their right to choose what to do with their bodies,” former Riverhead Supervisor Laura Jens-Smith said. “And I think it’s important for people to get together and voice our opinions. So I’m very happy to see people here…”
Others called Republican lawmakers who seek to ban or severely restrict abortion hypocrites.
“They’re not pro-life, they are forced birthers — because they don’t care after the fetus is born,” Lisa La Corte said. “Do they vote for childcare? Do they support medical insurance for a family? So they don’t care about families; they just care about us being incubators. I am not someone’s incubator. I’m a person and I make decisions from my own body.”
Many speakers also pointed out that the decision to ban abortion isn’t what a majority of Americans want. A recent poll by ABC News/Washington Post shows that most Americans — 58% — believe that abortion should be legal in all or most cases. That same poll shows that 70% of Americans believe the decision to have an abortion should be left to a woman and her doctor. And 54% believe Roe v. Wade should not be overturned.
Kathryn Casey Quigley, the chairwoman of the Southold Democratic Committee, said a decision to overturn Roe threatens not only abortion, but other rights backed by Supreme Court precedent.
“It’s not going to stop with abortion,” she said. “It’s going to become more draconian, and more draconian. LGBTQ rights are going to continue to be attacked. Women’s rights are going to continue to be attacked.”
Speakers urged the crowd to go out and vote in this November’s midterm election for pro-choice candidates. November’s election will decide the makeup of Congress for the next two years and the governorship in New York. Rep. Lee Zeldin, the likely Republican-Conservative candidate for governor, is vocally anti-abortion. He has cosponsored the ‘‘Life at Conception Act,’’ which defines “human being” as a member of the homo sapiens species “at all stages of life,” beginning at the moment of conception and declares that the right to life guaranteed by the Constitution is vested in each human being. He also cosponsored the ‘‘Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act,’’ which would prohibit performing an abortion where the fetus is 20 weeks post-fertilization.
According to the Center for Reproductive Rights, if Roe v. Wade is overturned, 26 states in the union are labeled as “hostile” to abortion rights, meaning the states already have bans in place that will become enforceable after the decision or have legislatures likely to enact bans.
“[I’m] old enough to remember when we were in high school, and somebody in our class suddenly had to drop out. And then several months later, she would come back, and her family would have a new baby brother or a new baby sister. That is how things went — if they were lucky,” Jane Flinter said. “We can’t go back there. We can’t allow our children, and our grandchildren, and our granddaughters to go back there.”
Others said larger reforms are needed to protect the right to have an abortion. “I frankly feel it’s time to pack the [Supreme] Court and end the filibuster; change things, set things right,” Steven Rosmarin said, mentioning that the three justices nominated by President Donald Trump said they acknowledged Roe was an established precedent.
“End the Trump legacy,” he said.
“It’s just about having the power to live your life the way that you know is best to live,” said Lisa Fine, who came with her young daughter, Sunny to display signs in support of the right to have an abortion.
“I think that the reason we’re here right now is because everyone’s choice counts,” Sunny said. “And I think one person can make a difference.”
RiverheadLOCAL photos by Alek Lewis
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