Stand With Those in Mississippi and Albuquerque Bravely Stepping Out to Confront the Anti-Abortion Fascists
October 31, 2013 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
Dear Revolution,
I have been following the coverage at revcom.us calling for people to converge in Mississippi and stand up against the siege being organized by Christian fundamentalist fascists against the last abortion clinic in that state.
Here's what I have been thinking:
As the call from StopPatriarchy.org says, "November 2-6 Operation Save America and their shock troops from around the nation will once again lay siege to the Jackson Women's Health Clinic, the last clinic in Mississippi. This terror must be resisted…"
What if protests and demonstrations of support for and solidarity with those who are so bravely confronting the onslaught of attacks on abortion rights took place in cities across the country…in neighborhoods and on campuses? This would communicate to all that nationwide women and men are drawing the line here and now…and refuse to accept these wholesale, nationwide attacks by legislatures and by these fanatical anti-abortion groups. We would declare our determination to wage an uncompromising fight for the right to abortion and against the war being waged on women.
Standing with the people in Jackson could take many creative forms—ranging from protests and speak outs to making videos in support of the clinic and then posting them on youtube and sending them to revcom.us and StopPatriarchy.org. And there are many other ways to send messages of support to those defending the clinic in Jackson. Banners could be made and signed, for instance.
We should get the current issue of Revolution all over the place and promoted everywhere, including at important cultural events where this fight should be made known and people should step forward to be a part of it. The poster "Emergency in Mississippi: Abortion Rights Under Attack," which is up at revcom.us this week and printed in Revolution, should appear all over the place. It will be vital in spreading the word.
And when we do take action, let's notify media of all kinds to cover these actions.
Reading about the aims of these Christian fundamentalist fascists and the hateful and thug tactics they utilize to prevent women who want and need abortions from having them makes my outrage grow by the minute. The right of all women to determine when and if they have children is so basic to being able to determine what their lives will be and be about. Without that right, women are truly enslaved. This is not just something those who are fighting for the right to abortion say…it is the reality of what it means for women to be forced to have a child they do not want, for any reason. This is a reality which Dr. Willie Parker* and Sunsara Taylor so movingly describe. Abortion on demand and without apology.
This is really a moment to draw the line and say NO MORE! And this is a moment to stand with those in Mississippi who are stepping out to confront these fanatics. The stakes of defending this clinic are high. The Jackson clinic is the last abortion clinic in Mississippi, and these attacks must be met with determined resistance to defend this clinic or thousands of women in that state will be denied the right to abortion. But as Sunsara Taylor and Rigel Kane wrote, "These are not ‘local' issues." Whether people mobilize to resist these attacks will not only impact this clinic, but is critical to turning back the whole war on women. We must meet these attacks with determined action all over the country.
So I call on all those reading this…jump in with your ideas and action!
From a reader
*Dr. Willie Parker is one of the two heroic doctors who regularly fly to Mississippi to provide abortions. Read the Revolution interview with him and view his discussion with Sunsara Taylor.
If you like this article, subscribe, donate to and sustain Revolution newspaper.