Boisterous Protesters Rally For Women's Rights In Laguna Beach

LAGUNA BEACH, CA—Hundreds of enthusiastic protesters lined Main Beach's grassy area on Saturday to demonstrate for women's reproductive rights. Handmade signs and lots of pink clothing dominated. Woman and men of all ages, young kids and dogs gathered peacefully yet boisterously. Shouts of "Wooooo!" rang out in response to every horn that honked in solidarity from the nearby traffic on Coast Highway.

It was nonstop noise.

Gwen McNallan, president of the Laguna Beach Democratic Club, kept the chants going. "Hey, hey. Ho, ho. The Texas law has got to go." The club sponsored the event.

McNallan was buoyed by the fired-up crowd as she worked the sidewalk. Despite a bullhorn, she was drowned out when attempting to read a statement Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor made on Wednesday.

At some point a tambourine joined in on all the chants, shaking exuberantly to drivers tooting horns and calling out in solidarity.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was invoked on numerous handmade signs. Dissent collars appeared on signage and young protesters' clothes.

Even before the 10 a.m. official start, the growing crowd had intense spirit. An older woman strutted down the sidewalk with her sign facing the demonstrators. A roar went up tinged with laughter as people read: "NOW YOU'VE PISSED OFF GRANDMA!"

Wire hangers were back as a motif, as well.

"Let's keep raising our voices!" called Katrina Foley through the bullhorn. The first woman Democrat ever elected to the Orange County Board of Supervisors addressed the demonstrators numerous times, making sure everyone along the stretched-out crowd between Broadway and Forest Avenue could hear. Later, she called upon everyone to register at least one 16-year-old to vote.

Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris, who represents the state's 74th district, wore a deep magenta top and took the bullhorn, too. "Stand Up, Fight Back!" she called. "Our sisters in Texas need us. Our sisters in Missouri need us. Our sisters all across America need us."

Not wearing pink but there in solidarity were Joe Kerr, a second-generation firefighter running for OC Supervisor, and Harley Rouda, who will try to reclaim his seat in the House of Representatives in 2022.

The lone counterprotester stood with his own bullhorn and signage on the opposite side of Coast Highway. His running commentary was continually overwhelmed by horns blaring and chanting. Patch overheard a woman ask her friend, "I wonder how many adopted children he's raising."

Early on, two men yelled at the backs of protesters from the ocean side. "How many more black kids do you want to butcher?" asked the one who sported a top hat. Later, another angry man was ignored each time he screamed "white whores." They quickly disappeared.

On a beautiful October day that saw the U.S. COVID-19 death toll surpass 700,000, Laguna Beach joined protests throughout the country to protect women's rights, which, they proclaim, are human rights.