College Students Call for Abortion Rights at Protest May 4

As hundreds of abortion rights protesters marched past Zilber Hall on the Marquette University campus, students smiled, waved and blew kisses from the third floor.

“Do you need to get your steps in?” a young woman from the crowd shouted to a young man waiting to cross Wisconsin Ave. at 13th Street.

“Hell yeah,” the Marquette student shouted back.

The crowd cheered as he was handed a cardboard sign that said “choice” on the front and “abortion is a human right” on the back.

Hundreds of young people and college students attended the rally and march for abortion rights on Wednesday, May 4, which drew support from spectators at nearly every block on their 4.5-mile march around Milwaukee. 

“I felt very proud of the presence we had in those streets,” said Behr Hedlund, a UW-Milwaukee student who attended the protest. 

The rally and march, organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation-Milwaukee (PSL) and the Milwaukee International Women’s Day (IWD) Coalition, was in response to a leaked Supreme Court decision that indicates the court could overturn Roe v. Wade, which would leave abortion rights up to state governments.

The groups also organized rallies, marches and an open meeting for abortion rights on May 7, May 13 and 14. 

“Three years ago, I chose to have an abortion,” said MeKenna, a member of PSL and emcee of the rally. “I learned firsthand not only how difficult of a decision that is to make, but more importantly how difficult it is to get access to one in the first place.”  

She did not want to share her last name for internet privacy reasons. In her speech, she cited the Women’s Right to Know Act, passed under Scott Walker, which requires the clinic to give abortion patients a 24-hour waiting period after the initial appointment, an ultrasound, and a 30-page pamphlet to review.

“If you think Roe v. Wade is giving us everything we need, you’re wrong. Roe. v. Wade is the floor and we need to break through the ceiling,” MeKenna said. “…The point of healthcare is not to question the morality of the person’s decision to do what they’d like with their body. The point of healthcare is to provide safe and effective medical procedures to those who are seeking it.”

The event began at Red Arrow Park in downtown Milwaukee shortly after 4 p.m.; Mayor Cavalier Johnson attended the rally. There was a station to make signs and two speeches from PSL organizers to rally the crowd.

The first speaker, Sam, explained the reason for the rally and march and what a post-Roe Wisconsin would look like. She also connected the decision to other issues like LGBTQ+ rights, minimum wage, as well as the group’s broader fight for socialism.

“They do not care about our lives, they care about controlling people’s bodies,” Sam said.

“They don’t trust women,” yelled a woman from the crowd.

MeKenna, the second speaker, said that low-income people do not have the funds to travel to one of Wisconsin’s four abortion clinics, all of which are in south and southeastern Wisconsin, especially before the 10-week cutoff for a pill abortion, rather than a surgical one.

“I said to my doctor I don’t have time off [work] right now, can I come back next week? She said, ‘We don’t have next week. You’ll owe hundreds of more dollars.’”

“Capitalism!” a different woman from the crowd yelled.

The crowd began marching from the park to Planned Parenthood on Wisconsin Ave. as driving escorts honked their horns, accompanied by other drivers honking and holding their fists out of car windows.

Hedlund, who had never been to a protest before this one, said the energy during the march motivated them to do more in the future.

The group of marchers was diverse. Men, women and gender-nonconforming people, parents with children and older people; though, young adults and college students made up a notable portion of the crowd.

“I just feel failed for the millionth time over in the past few years,” said Riley Hornilla, a 20-year-old marcher who studies at the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE). “I was a huge part of the march for our lives protest back in 2018 and that was when I was more of a kid and I felt like the government was failing us and here it is again.”

On the march to Planned Parenthood, the chants changed nearly every block.

The marchers arrived at Planned Parenthood at 6 p.m. sharp and the crowd chanted “I love Planned Parenthood” while organizers handed around water and snacks. There were brief speeches from two members of PSL, who referred to each other as comrades, and a member of the IWD Coalition.

Many of the marchers and speakers expressed their frustrations with the Democratic party, saying the federal government should have tried to codify Roe v. Wade months ago. During one of the speeches at Planned Parenthood, Hedlund yelled “f*** Joe Biden,” which was then chanted by the crowd.

The group marched back to Red Arrow Park walking through the Avenues West neighborhood where residents encouraged the crowd.

An older woman danced on the sidewalk outside Family Dollar on 27th St. and said “that’s what I’m talking about. That’s what I’m talking about” while another person honked their car horn from the parking lot.

When passing Aurora Sinai Hospital on State St., nurses and patients smiled and waved from the first, second, and third floors.

Without the federal protection of Roe v. Wade, Wisconsin would revert to its 1849 abortion law. This law outlaws all abortions except to save the life of the mother. Anyone who performs an illegal abortion, such as healthcare providers, could be found guilty of a Class H Felony and could face up to six years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.

“I think our country is ultimately going to get more and more regressive and more conservative to a point where there’s more class conflicts and social injustices,” Hedlund said.

Attorney General Josh Kaul told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he would not enforce the abortion ban while he is in office.

Dr. Gillian Battino, a Wausau breast radiologist running for State Treasurer, was at the rally collecting signatures to get on the ballot. She is concerned that reversing Roe v. Wade will result in more deaths of women and for her children’s future. 

“This is the scariest of times,” Battino said.

Wisconsin Right to Life, an anti-abortion organization, said they are cautiously optimistic that the leaked decision will come to fruition.

“The left, and pro-abortion elected officials, are desperately trying to use this leaked decision to change the narrative,” said Wisconsin Right to Life Executive Director Heather Weininger in a statement. “We need to focus on defending innocent human life, and pray for the safety of the Justices.”

There was little opposition at the rally and march May 4. During a speech at Red Arrow Park, a man played cricket noises and, in the last leg of the march, some young men on a porch chuckled and rolled their eyes at the crowd and an impatient driver told the crowd to read the Bible before making transphobic comments and demanding gas money.

“I wish there was more that could be done in a protest, especially a peaceful one,” Hedlund said.

Hedlund attended the second rally and march on May 7 and said the crowd was bigger than on May 4; they saw four anti-abortion counterprotesters using megaphones.

“My father would never support something like this [protest],” said Nyah Berens, a 19-year-old UWM student who took this semester off. “I think having male supporters here is so important because these are the women in their lives that are going to be affected by this.”

PSL and the IWD Coalition are planning on continuing to gather to advocate for abortion rights, according to the organization’s Facebook page.

The Supreme Court is expected to release its final decision within the next two months, according to Politico, the publication to which the draft opinion was leaked.

“It makes me sick and angry and scared,” said Madison Doll, a 20-year-old UWM student who attended the protest. “There will still be abortions just unsafe ones.”