'Our Bodies Our Choice': Abortion Rights Rally Held In Montco

ABINGTON, PA — Pro-choice supporters gathered outside of the Abington Township municipal complex late Wednesday afternoon to decry a leaked U.S. Supreme Court decision that purports to overturn Roe v. Wade, the five-decade-old decision upholding Americans' right to an abortion.

The crowd of around 30 or so individuals came out to show support for abortion rights, and slam those on the other side who would like to see the freedom of choice taken away by those on the high court.

"The holding is that women are second class citizens," said U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean, a Democrat from Montgomery County who previously served as an Abington Township commissioner in her early days of elected office.

Dean counted herself among those who, in the wake of the draft court opinion leak, are full of "outrage, anger, horror at what can be taken away because of a politicized Supreme Court."

"My goal is that the opinion remains a draft and never sees the light of day," said Dean, who reiterated a call to elected representatives to codify Roe via federal legislation.

Other speakers were equally incensed.

"I'm going to call it like it is. This is complete b******t," said State Rep. Nancy Guenst, a Montgomery County Democrat who came out to show support for the pro-choice crowd. "As has been said in the past, we will not go quietly into the night."

State Sen. Art Haywood, a Democrat representing the 4th Senatorial District in Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties, used the opportunity to stress the importance in voting in upcoming elections, since ensuring abortion remains legal in Pennsylvania regardless of any possible court outcome means electing pro-choice legislators and a pro-choice governor who will stand up for women.

"I'm just as outraged as anyone else," Haywood said. "This kind of legislation is all about control. This is what this is really about in the culture of our nation."

Haywood noted that Pennsylvania still offers protection for abortion in cases where the fetus is up to 24 weeks old, but that could change if a pro-life legislature and governor end up on the winning sides of this year's election contests.

Melissa Cerrato, a Horsham resident and candidate seeking election to Pennsylvania's 151st House District, said she refuses to consider the prospect of returning to a time when women were not legally able to get safe abortions.

"We shouldn't be legislating this," she said. "This is such a personal decision to make."

The rally was organized by a group called Abington for Peace.

Amy Martin, one of the cofounders of the group, spoke to Patch ahead of the rally.

"We really just wanted to provide a space for people to come out and have that camaraderie instead of just sitting at home and being frustrated," Martin said.

Martin said her organization has held other events in the past in the region including Black Lives Matter rallies and events targeting gun violence.