First Amendment Madness in Maryland

A few weeks ago, I performed my very first "active" duty as a pro-choice activist and attended the "Summer of Choice" rally in Germantown, Maryland.  Germantown, right in my very backyard, just happens to be the home of Dr. Leroy Carhart, one of the nation's few late-term abortion providers.  Like Dr. George Tiller, Dr. Carhart is on the very vanguard of the abortion debate, often singled out and/or blacklisted by the religious right.  Since Dr. Tiller's assassination, Dr. Carhart's precarious position has been all the more apparent:  there are people, many people, who want this man dead.

Accordingly, the "Summer of Choice" rally was populated with Dr. Carhart's passionate defenders.  Some had had abortions; all were thankful that their reproductive rights were protected should they ever need one.  The pro-life representation was surprisingly small, although there were the customary crucifixes and banners depicting dismembered, bloody fetuses.  One man allegedly told the patrolling cop that he should "turn his gun into the clinic and shoot the Baby Killer."

I was most surprised by the atmosphere of anxiety and even, at times, paranoia:  it definitely served as a harsh reminder of the reality of clinic violence that I will face every day if I do become an "abortionist," as the pro-lifers so lovingly call them.  This violence will become more than mere rhetoric:  it will become my Sword of Damocles.

I will admit, however, that I was somewhat disappointed by the protest.  My primary objection was the strong preponderance of female protestors, and I initially assumed that men were largely absent because they simply did not care.  I very quickly realized, however, that a pro-choice rally is often not a comfortable place for men, with feminist rage and man-hating running rampant.  Reproductive choice, women insist, is synonymous with radical and often divisive feminism.

I take issue with this viewpoint because I feel that making reproductive rights a "women's issue" cheapens the cause, making it something that only pertains to 50% of the population, something to be sequestered to the back of the store with tampons and Vagisil.  Reproductive rights and family planning are issues for everyone, not just Women's Studies majors on summer break.  Birth control, population, quality of life - these affect us all, and we should all be invested.