A small group gathered to protest outside Palo Alto City Hall on May 3, 2022 after a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion advocated to overturn Roe v. Wade. Sports Palo Alto HS student arrested for threatening to 'shoot up' school Protesters also objected to what they characterized as Whole Foods' silence on the issue and past statements by its CEO that are critical of the Affordable Care Act. Become a Member Become a member today. Contact Us ", Rebecca said she brought her daughter Eve, age 9, to the demonstration because, as a physician and a mother, she believes that it's essential to use your voice. "Using descriptions like "very dehumanizing" and a "complete disregard for the rights of women," Andrew Adams, Chief of Staff and Head of Strategic Communications at Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, said that the draft opinion marks a complete and historic reversal on the part of the court. "Many of the people who are so vehement on this issue (have) an utter lack of care for what happens when children are born," Weinstein said. Uploaded: Mon, May 16, 2022, 4:55 pm There are many articles which state that lower income women receive much poorer healthcare during pregnancy, with more spontaneous miscarriages, more still births, lower birth weights as well as more serious complications during birth including deformities and similar types of problems. Please share it. Although the court is not expected to issue a ruling in the Mississippi case until June, Vara Ramakrishnan, one of the national organizers of the Strike for Choice protests, said public . Follow Palo Alto Online and the Palo Alto Weekly on Twitter @paloaltoweekly, Facebook and on Instagram @paloaltoonline for breaking news, local events, photos, videos and more. Your contribution matters. We'll take that trade-off any day. Nova Ukraine, a non-profit organization based in Palo Alto, California, has been identifying areas in Ukraine that are most in need of humanitarian efforts and has been raising funds to provide. @adrianfine #FoothillsPark pic.twitter.com/c937Jl52Je. It robs people of rights that they've held for over 50 years. Protesters gather across the street from the downtown Palo Alto Whole Foods on Dec. 1, 2021 to protest in favor of abortion rights. For leaders at Planned Parenthood, the possibility of a Roe v. Wade reversal is significant in what it represents both symbolically and for the future of the organization. According to an October 2021 report from the Guttmacher Institute, a total abortion ban would increase the number of women of reproductive age whose nearest provider is in California from 46,000 to 1.4 million a nearly 3,000% increase.In addition to a package of 11 bills announced by the California Legislative Women's Caucus in early April, Becker said he's hopeful that the constitutional amendment, which he's co-authoring with Atkins, will receive the two-thirds majority needed to make it onto the November ballot. Home & Real Estate Menlo Park, East Palo Alto residents protest Facebook, Amazon Tech executives dont seem to be weighing in. Special Pubs The law, as it stands, allows each woman (and her partner with her doctor) to make a personal decision based on personal values and circumstances. A letter to the city urging a change was signed by more than 130 supporters, including local ministers and rabbis, the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, the local NAACP chapter and Regina Wallace Jones, the mayor of East Palo Alto, a majority-minority city adjacent to Palo Alto. I really dont think any of this is race-based, he said, citing the citys large Asian minority. As to the benefits of creating a buffer zone, Hale said that it would shelter people who were afraid of facing intimidation at the door. Call it whatever you want, meddling, judicial activism, "crafting precedent" from an imaginary constitution. 2023 Palo Alto Online. This park is my park / It is not your park, former Palo Alto Mayor Leland Levy sang during a virtual comment period before the City Council. Like Raging Grannies? He said he was also in favor of a move, like that taken by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors, to direct additional funding to local reproductive health care facilities. Carrying signs and chanting, demonstrators gathered in downtown Mountain View on Saturday, May 14, for a "Bans Off Our Bodies" protest, objecting to the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark case that guaranteed abortion rights.An estimated 200-300 protesters converged at the Mountain View Caltrain station and marched down Castro Street, chanting and making their way to all four corners of Castro and El Camino Real. In an interview with the Pulse, state Sen. Josh Becker, who represents California's 13th Senate District, including most of San Mateo County, called it "shocking and appalling that they're going to try to take away women's freedom.". Frontline workers were left off the vaccine list at Stanford Medical The company's press team did not respond to a request for comment before this news organization's press deadline.Robertson said she hopes the protests prompt a response from Whole Foods, as well as raise awareness among its customers, who Robertson said are mostly women.Although the court is not expected to issue a ruling in the Mississippi case until June, Vara Ramakrishnan, one of the national organizers of the Strike for Choice protests, said public pressure on the Supreme Court justices is important ahead of their ruling. "It's really critical.". Reproductive health has to start with education in high school about what happens during pregnancy, how smoking, drugs, alcohol are bad for the baby's development and healthy eating and lifestyle are necessary. ", Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, CA-18, who is running for reelection, also released a statement, describing the opinion as a historic attempt to "eviscerate a constitutional right by overturning Roe v. Obituaries Terms of Use Uploaded: Thu, Dec 2, 2021, 9:53 am The lives of impregnated women change forever, period. Similar debates are playing out elsewhere, including on the beaches of Connecticut. "Barbara Weinstein shared a similar sentiment, conveying her anger about what she says is a lack of concern for children after they've been born. @vmshadle. Wade, a small group gathered outside the downtown Palo Alto Whole Foods store on Wednesday afternoon to protest in favor of the legal right to have an abortion. Barbara Weinstein shared a similar sentiment, conveying her anger about what she says is a lack of concern for children after they've been born. Its so racist to me, and so elitist. You dont see that many black and brown faces in Foothills Park, Anjali Ramanathan, 17, said. Some protesters stood in front of the police car with their signs. @vmshadle - I suggest you reread Roe, because it is clear you don't understand it. Photo by Magali Gauthier. According to the Politico article, five of the nine justices favor the revocation of federal abortion rights, leaving regulation to the individual states. But, a baby is a separate body with its own rights. Our large banner displayed this blunt and honest message: "Abortion takes a human life." She previously wrote for the Daily Californian and the Palo Alto Weekly. Who wants to take morality lessons from a crowd that glorifies the Duggar family simply because they'd birthed a huge number of children, including child molesters. "And that goes beyond just adopting a resolution condemning the court for its decision. Again, I recommend the article. The case brings the potential that the court's conservative majority could overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which found that there is a Constitutional right for women to have an abortion.Raging Grannies organizer Ruth Robertson said she and other protesters turned out Wednesday because they couldn't "stand by idly" while the court considers rolling back abortion rights. But its most striking feature may be what it takes to get in: proof you live in Palo Alto, a city where houses tend to run about $3 million and a two-bedroom apartment rents for $3,700 on average. Anti-white graffiti leads to hate-crime investigation in Palo Alto Calls to end racism grew louder Thursday night when a diverse group of protesters took to the streets of Palo Alto, their message of racial justice echoing the message sent by pro athletes.. They sang songs and chanted, occasionally walking into the intersection. Reproductive choice is personal, private, and serious. I think that's hideous.". Ruth Robertson, right, rallies a small crowd across the street from the downtown Palo Alto Whole Foods on Dec. 1, 2021 as part of a protest in favor of abortion rights. The event was spearheaded by the local chapter of the activist group Raging Grannies, and was part of a nationwide series of Strike for Choice protests. Terms of Use On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case challenging a Mississippi law that bans abortions after 15 weeks. "The protesters largely gathered across the street from the Whole Foods store, carrying signs with slogans such as "Keep Abortion Legal" and "Whole Foods: Support the Women Who Support You." If Roe v. Wade is overturned, San Jose's Mar Monte location the largest in the state of California expects an additional 200-500 out-of-state women a week seeking abortions, according to a county news release. It was Roe that was meddling, defining when a woman could, and when a woman couldn't get an abortion. An exclusive park in the heart of Silicon Valley faces a - NBC News Eve carried a sign that said, "This is a free country and abortion is freedom. Unlike the Grannies, we didn't get a sympathetic write-up and a pair of photos in the local press, but based on actual timed traffic samples, our message was seen by over 14,000 motorists between 7:00 AM and 9:00 AM. "For women across America who want to keep ownership over their health, this decision should not stand," he tweeted on Monday. It robs people of rights that they've held for over 50 years. ", "I do think we have a responsibility," Slocum said. Follow Palo Alto Online and the Palo Alto Weekly on Twitter @paloaltoweekly, Facebook and on Instagram @paloaltoonline for breaking news, local events, photos, videos and more. At the Palo Alto protest, Curry brought his 7-year-old daughter, Riley, who participated with classmates. Mobile site. Don't have one!" The status of women cannot be a bargaining chip. Picking nits about "meddling" is a meaningless argument and is furthermore ENTIRELY irrelevant to the lives of women and their right to control their own bodies. ""I do think we have a responsibility," Slocum said. Your contribution matters. Protesters rally to protect abortion rights as - Palo Alto Weekly Tom DuBois, a Palo Alto City Council member, said he does not believe racism is motivating the opponents of change. The protest targeted Whole Foods because the company is headquartered in Texas, which has banned abortions after six weeks, before many women know they are pregnant. Becker emphasized the gravity of the situation, particularly for women living in less progressive states. On the same day that those dozen Raging Grannies were preaching to a handful of sympathetic Palo Altans outside Whole Foods, five other Palo Alto residents were presenting a pro-life message on a pedestrian overpass above the morning commute traffic on Hwy 101. Only 1.6 percent of residents are Black and 5.7 percent are Hispanic, according to census data. Circulation & Delivery, About Us Activists Protest at Palantir's Headquarters Over Contracts With ICE FWIW, you do have 100% control of your own body. All rights reserved. Peninsula residents protest Trump inauguration, policies here and afar Print Edition/Archives Photo by Lloyd Lee. Climate activists take to Palo Alto streets to demand action from local politicians Protest coincides with Global Climate Strike by Emily Margaretten / Palo Alto Weekly Uploaded: Sun, Sep. Courtesy Susan Nash/Bay City News.. Blogs A fan watches from the stands with a bag over his head during the fourth inning of a baseball game . Law School Activists Protest Judge Kyle Duncan's Visit To Campus - Palo Alto, CA - FedSoc, a conservative and libertarian law student group, invited Judge Duncan for a discussion on "Guns, Covid . In many states, still in living memory, women were chattel property of men - fathers, then husbands. You have no business condescending to me like that, Mr. Alderman. About 70 protesters swarmed Palantir's Palo Alto, Calif. headquarters in the early afternoon, bearing signs criticizing the company for doing business with the Immigration and Customs. Hundreds of demonstrators march down Castro Street during the "Bans Off Our Bodies" protest in Mountain View on May 14, 2022. Protesters also objected to what they characterized as Whole Foods' silence on the issue and past statements by its CEO that are critical of the Affordable Care Act. Granny B has a good point, especially because an increasing number of the anti-abortion / forced birth crowd mot only wants to ban abortion as most define it but also regular old birth control because it too prevents pregnancy even in the case of rape and incest. They have not always been just decisions (like the Dred Scott Case and the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II) but this is only the option we have if we wish to remain a democracy of majority rule. Ramanathan, who has helped organize protests at the park this summer, said the policy contradicts Palo Altos worldwide reputation for innovation and freethinking. TownSquare A little over a dozen people participated in the rally, held at 3 p.m. outside the 774 Emerson St. store. However, people on both sides of the discussion should be able to discuss this in a polite manner.