Posted on 03/12/2004 10:03:25 AM PST by StAthanasiustheGreat
Protestors clash over abortion rights
Students, community members line Sheridan Road in demonstration By Sheila Burt and Nick Collins March 11, 2004
Joe Scheidler positioned his 5-foot-high picture of a bloody fetus head in plain view of the passing cars on Sheridan Road. The national director of the Pro-Life Action League wanted to raise students' awareness about abortion through an on-campus protest on March 10.
Two women -- joining a group of more than 75 Northwestern students and community members to protest the anti-abortion group -- jumped in front of the tall man as they held abortion-rights signs.
Scheidler calmly walked down the road, only to be blocked by the two students again. Scheidler then lofted his sign above his head, but the duo countered by raising their own signs.
"It doesn't bother me," Scheidler said after the exchange. "I've seen it all -- I've been doing this for 31 years."
Sparked by the arrival of Scheidler's group, members of several anti-abortion and abortion rights groups lined Sheridan from the Arch past Foster Street for a two-hour demonstration that included the arrest of a Wilmette resident (see sidebar).
Ellen Stolar, president of the abortion rights NU student group Vox, said she heard of the Pro-Life Action League's plan to come to campus through an e-mail and immediately began notifying other groups around campus.
"(We wanted) to wake up some more apathetic NU students to the issue," said Stolar, a Weinberg sophomore, adding she was impressed with the number of students who attended the protest.
Several students held a 15-foot long banner that read "Abortion is Healthcare," alongside others with smaller signs. Stolar held a poster reading: "Get off my campus, get out of my uterus."
Along with holding signs, Vox members passed out condoms to people with statistics citing how many women die from illegal abortions around the world.
The images of aborted fetuses displayed by about 20 members of the Pro-Life Action League included the dates and places of the abortions and slogans such as, "Hitler's Holocaust. America's Holocaust."
Paula Emmerth, a research chemist from Round Lake Beach, Ill., held one of these signs. She said there are specific reasons for coming to college campuses.
"College campuses are targeted because of the age of women here and general sexual promiscuity," she said.
Anne Mikelonis, a Weinberg freshman, passed by the two demonstrating groups on the west side of Sheridan near Foster.
"I'm glad that the pro-life side is showing that there's not just one side," she said. "It's good that they see it without the sugar coating. If you want the choice, then you should see the consequences of that choice."
Lauren Gray, a graduate student at the Family Institute who also was walking down west side of Sheridan, said she saw the images in a different light.
"They are appalling and I don't really see how it furthers their cause," she said. "Comparing (abortion) to the Holocaust is really unethical."
While many of the Pro-Life Action League members remained quiet during the protest, the abortion rights advocates chanted loudly.
Among the chants were: "Right to life, that's a lie. You don't care if women die," and "Not the church, not the state, only women should decide their fate."
The abortion-rights demonstrators also encouraged passing drivers to "honk for choice," adding to the noise of the already charged event.
"The multiple honkers are always fun -- and the honks with the thumbs up," said Donnie Maley, a Weinberg junior who demonstrated with the abortion rights groups. "The garbage truck was hardcore, and the Ethan Allen truck -- when I'm older I'm buying everything from there."
Eric Scheidler, Joe's son, said NU was the first stop of a national college tour to bring attention to the issue of abortion. The group plans to visit Loyola University and University of Chicago in the coming weeks.
He added that the Pro-Life Action League uses the images to depict the realities of late-term abortions and to, "open the heart to the humanity of the unborn child."
Nick Burt, a Medill freshman, said he contacted as many people as he could around campus and in the Chicago-area to notify them of the anti-abortion group's arrival.
"This is really our campus," said Burt, who is of no relation to one of the writers of this story. "And we have to be sending a message that pro-bigotry views are not representative of Northwestern."
Definetely. Notice pro-life has been replaced with anti-abortion.
This young person needs to wake up and smell the fumes. Six million Jews killed by Hitler is terrible; 40 million babies killed by their mothers and complicit "doctors" 7 times terrible.
The journalist always used the term anti-abortion. Pro-life was only used, because it is the name of the Pro-Life Action League and one other time as part of a quote. The term anti-abortion was chosen by the baby killers, because they see offing troublesome kids as a right and theat's what they are promoting.
Nonetheless, the term "pro-life" was in fact used more than twice as often as "anti-abortion".
Including by a passerby:
"Anne Mikelonis, a Weinberg freshman, passed by the two demonstrating groups on the west side of Sheridan near Foster.
"I'm glad that the pro-life side is showing that there's not just one side," she said."
It's part of the name of the group. That is the only reason it was used. Both of the journalists used the term anti-abortion 3 times to describe the pro-life group. The article is biased.
Because... I guess you don't need a reason if you're an "enlightened" sophomore.
I'm glad the pro-aborts showed up. It's probably the first time that they've seen the fruits of their labor, in living color.
Events such as this are also good training. I see the leftists acted as their usual pig selves.
Thus is the sloganeering that passes for discourse among the pro-abort minions.
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