{"id":180060,"date":"2022-06-25T11:44:19","date_gmt":"2022-06-25T18:44:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eugeneweekly.com\/?p=186941"},"modified":"2022-06-25T12:00:07","modified_gmt":"2022-06-25T19:00:07","slug":"a-supreme-rally","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/2022\/06\/25\/a-supreme-rally\/","title":{"rendered":"A Supreme Rally"},"content":{"rendered":"

About 1,000 protesters stood outside of the Wayne Morse Federal Courthouse in Eugene, holding up signs and chanting in support of <\/span>Roe v. Wade<\/span><\/i> and reproductive rights. The protesters, who later marched through downtown Eugene, were there for Planned Parenthood Advocates June 24 rally.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Later that same night, still more protesters gathered outside Dove Medical, a faith-based and pro-abstinence \u201cpregnancy diagnosis\u201d center.<\/span><\/p>\n

The chants and the car honks in support of the protesters at the federal courthouse were so loud that at times it was difficult to hear speakers at the\u00a0 rally, which was already organized and awaiting for the U.S. Supreme Court\u2019s expected 6-3 vote on <\/span>Dobbs v. Jackson Women\u2019s Health Organization<\/span><\/i>.The decision overturning the 50 years of legal access constitutionally guaranteed under <\/span>Roe<\/span><\/i> v. Wade<\/span><\/i> was issued the morning of June 24.<\/span><\/p>\n

Speakers from the event included Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon Board of Directors member Karmen Fore, local Planned Parenthood staff, Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries Commissioner and 4th Congressional District candidate Val Hoyle and University of Oregon student and poet Paris Woodward-Ganz.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After the hour-long event, protesters marched through downtown Eugene, being met with overall support from onlookers.\u201cPlanned Parenthood has been planning for this day for over two years since the last administration made it clear they plan to dismantle personal freedoms and right to privacy,\u201d Fore said at the event. \u201cWe will be there for our patients for the care they seek.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She added that abortion care is health care and the Supreme Court\u2019s decision strips the health care right across the U.S. \u201cWe will see people without the means seek substandard care and people will die, as they did pre-<\/span>Roe<\/span><\/i>,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Protesters stand outside the Wayne Morse Federal Courthouse<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite a few hecklers from the crowd asking for real people, not politicians, Hoyle addressed the crowd, saying that just because abortion is safe in Oregon doesn\u2019t mean it always will be. \u201cUnderstand that they\u2019re coming after us,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd we are going to fight back today.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If Hoyle wins in November, she would be the first woman elected to Oregon\u2019s 4th District congressional seat.<\/span><\/p>\n

Who\u2019s in office right now matters, Hoyle said. \u201cOur Senate right now won\u2019t appoint anti-choice judges. And in the House they will support right now pro-choice votes.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Paris Woodward-Ganz said they woke up in shock to see the U.S. Supreme Court overturn <\/span>Roe v. Wade<\/span><\/i>, legal precedent that protected legal abortions throughout the country.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was infuriated. I was enraged. At first I didn’t know what to do,\u201d Woodward-Ganz tells <\/span>Eugene Weekly<\/span><\/i> after the rally. \u201cBut the way I get things out is through poetry.\u201d They contacted Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon, the organizers of the rally, to read their poem \u201cMythos.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After the lineup spoke, the organizers opened the forum for members from the crowd, some of whom spoke about their experiences with accessing reproductive rights, including the need for abortions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After the rally, about 1,200 protesters marched through the streets of downtown Eugene, stopping traffic. During the near-two hour march, the group marched from the federal courthouse to downtown Eugene to 5th Street Public Market and back to the courthouse.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Protesters march on Broadway in downtown Eugene<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Throughout the march, people in cars honked in support and cheered from restaurants. There were only a few negative encounters with drivers trying to go through the crowd.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While at the courthouse at the end of the protest, protesters stopped traffic on Coburg Road. A driver, with a Blue Lives Matter bumper sticker on the car, hit one protester. Officers in a Eugene Police Department squad car saw the crash and chased the driver, prompting cheers from the crowd.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

EPD spokesperson Melinda McLaughlin says via email that the report hasn\u2019t been submitted, so it\u2019s unknown if the driver was charged with anything.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The day of protests against the overturning of <\/span>Roe v. Wade<\/span><\/i> ended with a 10 pm \u201cNight of Rage\u201d protest outside of Dove Medical Center, a self-proclaimed faith-based and abstinence-only \u201cpregnancy diagnosis\u201d group. According to James Croxton, editor in chief of <\/span>Double Sided Media<\/span><\/i>, EPD pulled in within 15 minutes of protesters arriving.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Well, I'm back out and near the Dove Medical Center in Eugene where a "Night of Rage" is supposed to take place at 10 p.m. <\/p>\n

Earlier today, people were seen gathered in the parking lot, on the roof, and they boarded up all the windows. pic.twitter.com\/GMLTGaJsLv<\/a><\/p>\n

— James Croxton (He\/Him) (@jwcroxton) June 25, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n