Hundreds rallied near the intersection of Fairfax and Melrose avenues on Jan. 19 to mark the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.
Hosted by the National Council of Jewish Women in Los Angeles, the rally drew about 500 people, who converged outside the council’s office to defend women’s reproductive rights.
Cheers and chants of “Save Roe” and “We won’t go back” rippled through the crowd as demonstrators gathered around a makeshift stage. Several protesters held wire hangers and signs with slogans, including “My body, my choice,” “Keep abortion safe and legal” and “We will protect each other.”
“We need to throw a monkey wrench into everything that we don’t like that’s coming out of Washington,” L.A. County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl told the rally. “We are going to do a Planned Parenthood defense and we are going to do an immigrant defense.”
The Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision ruled that it is a woman’s right to have an abortion within the first trimester of pregnancy.
According to a 2016 Pew Research study, about 57 percent of Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 39 percent oppose abortion.
Further, the Guttmacher Institute, a New York-based research and policy organization, has found:
• 1 in 3 American women will undergo an abortion by the time she is 45 years old.
• About 45 percent of all pregnancies in the United States in 2011 were unintended, and nearly 4 in 10 pregnancies were aborted.
• In 2014, more than 920,000 abortions were performed across the country, a 12 percent decrease from 1.06 million in 2011.
The majority of women who underwent abortion in 2014 were in their 20s, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly 75 percent of women who had an abortion in 2014 were low-income and lived below the poverty line, according to the CDC. According to the Guttmacher Institute, the reason the number of abortions has declined is the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which requires insurance companies to cover various contraceptive procedures. Now, some fear that President Donald Trump’s actions will deprive women of access to affordable contraception and safe abortions.
“Abortion rights are critical,” said Sarah Bradshaw, an activist with Texas-based Feminist Majority Foundation, who was part of the L.A. rally. “There are women lying in graves today because they didn’t have an access to legal abortion. We refuse to go back because we know what it means for women.”
Treasure Cary, a student at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, said she joined the rally to remind herself and other young women that they shouldn’t take their freedom of choice for granted.
“If you don’t do anything, they will take your freedom away from you,” the 18-year-old said. “Everyone has the right to make their own choices.”
She said many pro-life politicians and activists have little respect for women and children.
“Some people say they are pro-life, but they don’t care about women’s lives,” Cary said. “They don’t care about children’s lives. There are many kids in foster care and nobody wants to adopt them.”
Holding a “Love trumps hate” sign, Nikki Bayat, 15, a student at the Oakwood School in North Hollywood, said she wanted to let the new president know that people care about women’s issues.
“I’m offering what I can to people and trying to be supportive,” she said. “I want to make sure that our basic rights are not taken away.”
Liza Zipursky, a 29-year-old resident of the Pico-Fairfax neighborhood, said she wants women to continue fighting for their rights.
“I want women to be able to have a choice,” Zipursky said. “With Trump in the White House, it’s getting scary, and I hope people won’t get discouraged.”
Brandon Johnson, a TV writer, said he joined the protest because he wanted to support women.
“Real men stand up for women,” he said. “It’s the least I can do to give back to women who helped me.”
Princess Damalgi, 19, a student from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, said she wanted to rally with other women because she was passionate about human rights.
“I want to educate our younger generation,” she said. “If we all stand together, we can win. Trump is not my president, and all he speaks is hate, but we are not going to live in fear.”
