Advocates take to the Square

WASHINGTON — Advocates marched to bring attention to “reproductive rights, medical privacy, and bodily freedom” in Washington over the weekend.

A dozen individuals including three men met at the Mills Seed Company building Saturday morning.

The march around the Washington Square was advertised as a March for Human Rights, but did focus primarily on abortion and gun rights.

The group gathered inside as it sprinkled outside.

The women and men took turns commenting on their stances concerning pregnancy, gun control, and Roe v. Wade being overturned.

According to University of Iowa Law Professor Derek Muller, the decision is likely to be overturned due to a re-examination of the legal doctrine of Stare Decisis.

This is the same legal doctrine which was used to overturn segregation in 1954.

The premise behind this examination is to determine if federal laws are unworkable, relied upon, changed legal doctrines, and if previously-accept facts have changed.

“Our society and information has changed since 1973 when Roe v. Wade was decided,” Mueller said for why he believes, in his expert opinion the decision will be overturned.

Some states already have trigger laws in effect to either protect abortion rights or ban them, if this occurs.

Iowa does not have any trigger laws, at this time, however, there are laws on pause in legislature.

Assuming Roe v. Wade is overturned, Mueller says that Iowa could enact the waiting Heartbeat Bill within weeks.

This was a driving factor in the decision to march.

“I was terrified, my life was no longer my own,” a march attendee who prefers to remain unnamed said. “If it came down to me or her [the baby], they’d let me die.”

While the group got off topic and angry occasionally, there were those present, like Dr. Robbin Plattenberger-Gilmore, to remind the others to keep the message positive.

The group was led around the square by event organizer Barb Duder in dressed in a red cap and white cap like that worn by handmaids in the popular dystopian future Hulu series The Handmaid’s Tale.

Roman Catholic Women’s Priest Martha Sherman led the group in chants as they made their way around.

Every marcher had a sign, and they carried extras if anyone wished to join them.

Many did step out of businesses to see what the commotion was, but only one woman joined the march for a quarter of the block.

The group did briefly chant about gun control being pro-life, but focused primarily on abortion rights in signs and words.

Overall, the event was peaceful and uneventful, aside from one loud comment by Sherman quoting a Baptist preacher from Texas who chose to say that homosexuality had ought to be a death penalty offense.

Similarly focused marches are planned around the nation in light of the impending Roe V Wade decision and deaths of 21 at a Uvalde Texas Elementary shooting.

Comments: AnnaMarie.Ward@southeastiowaunion.com