From stoppatriarchy.org blog January 21, 2013
Stand Up for Women! Join Us in Washington D.C.
January 22, 2013 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
We have arrived in Washington DC! Stop Patriarchy burst out on the scene in a big way on our first day out in DC. We started bright and early at an anti-war rally which lead to a march towards the White House where masses of people were arriving in waves to hear President Obama’s inaugural speech. Our contingent was small, but the message was heard loud and clear. We marched through the streets among other radically minded folks, mostly chanting anti-war rhymes which were extremely important especially for those who were headed towards the inauguration of the war criminal himself, Obama; but our chant “Without this basic right, women can’t be free, abortion on demand and without apology!” really stood out and brought a whole other component to the march… and of course stirred up plenty of controversy.
The march ended at a barricade hundreds of feet away from the White House, lined with military and police personnel as well as army tanks. Can’t say that was a surprise. With protesters dispersing, we decided to continue on past the barricade and go into the crowds arriving for the inauguration to spread our palm cards and get more people involved with the movement. In about an hour, we got out over 1,000 palm cards, sparked many sharp debates, and gained lots of support and new connections. As we wrapped up the day at a nearby cafe, we were told by some people who had just gone to the inauguration and noticed our signs and stickers, that there was a lunatic anti-abortion fanatic dangling from a tree, completely interrupting their ability to watch to the inauguration and making a fool out of himself. The people telling us this story expressed how different the situation could have been, had we been there to counter him.
Well, this needs to be the situation everywhere, all the time. That is why we came to DC; to create a pole that draws people into this dialogue and challenges not only the crazy Christian fascists who want nothing more than to keep women in the dark ages, but also those who believe themselves to be ‘pro-choice’ but don’t see the need for such a political force to be out in the streets declaring that women are not free until they all have access to abortion and a world which does not demonize the women who choose to have one. The fact of the matter is, abortion rights are under attack, clinics are being shut down left and right, and regulations are at a record high limiting more and more women from even having the option of getting an abortion. This is entirely unacceptable and there is a huge need to not only acknowledge this and call it out, but also to oppose it and declare it for what it really is, a means of keeping women enslaved; and if half of humanity is enslaved, we are all enslaved. STAND UP FOR WOMEN! COME OUT WITH US THIS WEEK IN DC!
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