I didn’t really have an opinion about abortion at that age. I actually didn’t know much about sex. I just knew I didn’t have to go to class that day and got to see the White House, which I thought was pretty cool. We were loaded onto buses very early in the morning. The trip from NJ to DC is 3 ½ long and we had to get there for the first speaker for the March for Life.
.
I remember the morning was very cold that January and there were a lot of people already there when we arrived. Many of them are schoolchildren. Adults were holding signs with graphic pictures of fetuses on them and “Impeach Clinton” signs. They were angry. The nuns from my school escorted us to The Mall where we stood still, achingly cold. We were forced to clap for people we didn’t know, and frankly, didn’t understand. I understood we were filler in that crowd, I wondered how many other school kids were bused in like us, and how many actually knew what was happening.
.
There was a small gathering of Pro-Choice people that were circled by police. The Anti-Abortion folks were hurling garbage and insults at them as they played music and danced. They had better looking signs. They seemed happy and peaceful compared to all the bitter grimaces I’ve seen all day.
.
As we got back on the school bus I asked a nun why we were supposed to hate the people who were Pro-Choice, they seemed nice. She said “they hated life”. I said “actually, it looked like they were having a good time and really enjoyed life”. She smacked me across the face, told me not to talk back, and pushed me towards my seat. The sting lasted most of the ride home.
.
This week the news out of Texas stunned us. I’ve seen first hand the people who want to take away Reproductive Rights. I’ve witnessed how controlling and hate filled they are. They are extremists, fundamentalists, and are a small percentage of Americans. I’ve been a child shield in their war and are bolstered up by straw men. This law targets not just all women, it especially hits low income people the hardest. I don’t have simple answers but I know we are on the right side of history.
