‘My body, my rules.’ Fresno ‘Rally for Roe’ supports women’s right to abortion care
Several hundred people turned out Saturday in north Fresno to show their support for continued access to abortion care.
The Rally for Roe event was in response to the recent leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion showing plans to strike down the landmark Roe v. Wade case that has provided federal protections for nearly half a century to women seeking abortions.
“If you look around, there are people from all ages, all genders, all ethnicities, religions out here to fight for this,” said Samantha Snow, a spokesperson for Women’s March Fresno and the National Organization for Women in the central San Joaquin Valley, about the large crowd at Blackstone and Nees avenues in River Park.
Chants from those gathered included, “My body, my rules,” and included singing led by the Raging Grannies.
Many participants held signs that they waved at traffic. Some of them read: “Pro Choice Pro Love,” “Keep Your Rosaries Off My Ovaries,” “Rapists Have More Rights Than Me!” and “Men Of Quality Don’t Fear Equality!”
Others read “Protect Safe, Legal Abortion” and “We Won’t Go Back” beside the drawings of coat hangers, which have become symbols of the importance of Roe v. Wade. Before abortions were legalized, many women died or were severely injured from using the metal wires of coat hangers to terminate their unwanted pregnancies.
Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, was among those at Rally for Roe.
“To see the enthusiasm and the passion, I think it’s so important,” Costa said of the event. “The overwhelming majority of Americans believe that this ought to be a fundamental right for a woman to choose.”
Other rallies in support of Roe v. Wade were held across the country on Saturday – described by the Women’s March Foundation as a national day of action for reproductive rights. About 50,000 people signed up for a “Bans Off Our Bodies” rally in Los Angeles.
The Public Policy Institute of California found that most Californians support Roe v. Wade, including about 73% of people living in the Central Valley.
If Roe v. Wade is overturned, abortion care decisions will be left to the states. California leaders have made it clear that the state will continue to affirm peoples’ right to terminate a pregnancy. Gov. Gavin Newsom included abortion care as part of a $300 billion spending plan that he released on Friday.
The U.S. Senate on Wednesday fell short of passing a federal law that would have protected abortion access. President Joe Biden said Republicans “have chosen to stand in the way of Americans’ rights to make the most personal decisions about their own bodies, families and lives.”
This story was originally published May 14, 2022 at 1:09 PM.
