Reproductive-rights march draws between 250,000 and 750,000

Kayla Webley
2004-04-26
The Daily

Hundreds of thousands of protestors gathered in Washington, D.C., yesterday to march in support of abortion rights in a demonstration called March for Women's Lives. Among the crowd were three members of the UW chapter of Voices for Planned Parenthood (VOX).

According to Aiko Akers, president of VOX, the members flew to Washington to show their support and to be a part of a "historic occasion."

There has not been a major march for reproductive rights in Washington, D.C., since 1992, when an estimated 500,000 people showed up. Estimates for yesterday's march ranged from 250,000 to 750,000; no group provides an official count of attendance at events in Washington, D.C.

Of that number, Akers estimates 2,000 people made up the Washington state delegation.

Prior to the march, participants rallied in the Washington National Mall to listen to a number of speakers from various pro-choice and civil-liberties organizations.

According to Akers, speakers at the rally included members from the seven sponsoring organizations, including the National Organization for Women, National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Acion League Pro-Choice America and the American Civil Liberties Union, in addition to celebrity guests such as Janeane Garofalo and Saturday Night Live's Anna Gasteyer.

The march was to show support for reproductive liberties and to oppose decisions the Bush administration has made, said Akers.

"This administration has been so detrimental to women's rights from the beginning," Akers said. "I wanted to come out and show my support against this."

Recent abortion-related legislation is the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, which made fetal homicide a crime, and the Partial Birth Abortion Ban, which eliminated certain abortion procedures.

The march comprised members from across the nation and nearly 60 countries.

The supporters, according to VOX member Jenna Huntsberger, were completely decked out for the cause, complete with signs and stickers, some covering their entire bodies. Huntsberger said representatives from Texas wore T-shirts with the slogan "Don't mess with Texas women." Some marchers called themselves the "Pink Parade," and through their performance of "Hey Ya!" by Outkast displayed the message "Give Bush the pink slip."

Huntsberger participated in the event to actively voice her support for the pro-choice movement.

"It is important to get people out there actively stating why they are pro-choice," she said. "We want to show that America is a pro-choice country and will remain a pro-choice country."