12-hour Roe v. Wade protest denouncing Supreme Court ruling slated for Sarasota tonight

Samantha Gholar, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read
Deb Danehy of Bradenton and Katie Gerhardt of Sarasota, during a Sarasota Save Roe Response protest that started at the Sarasota County Courthouse complex organized by Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida on May, 3, 2022.
Deb Danehy of Bradenton and Katie Gerhardt of Sarasota, during a Sarasota Save Roe Response protest that started at the Sarasota County Courthouse complex organized by Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida on May, 3, 2022.

Local pro-choice groups and reproductive freedom activists have organized a 12-hour-long protest in downtown Sarasota's Five Point Park beginning at 7 p.m. Friday in response to the Supreme Court's overturning of the historic abortion-rights case Roe v. Wade.

Organized by Women's Voices of Southwest Florida, the demonstration will denounce the court's ruling from 7 p.m. Friday until 7 am Saturday. In anticipation of the decision, the grassroots organization planned the protest prior to Friday's ruling with the hope of creating a group of vocal abortion rights and human rights advocates to express their frustrations immediately following the Supreme Court ruling.

Women's Voices of Southwest Florida to hold 12-hour protest that denounces the fall of the historic Roe v. Wade reproductive rights ruling.
Women's Voices of Southwest Florida to hold 12-hour protest that denounces the fall of the historic Roe v. Wade reproductive rights ruling.

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About 10 a.m. Friday, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Americans no longer have a constitutional right to abortion, reversing a 50-year ruling in the Roe v. Wade case and essentially erasing the precedent. Now, abortion regulations and issues will be left up to individual states and their elected officials. Under current laws in many states, that will mean a swift end to abortion access in large parts of the U.S.

Stephanie Fraim, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida said via press release that the overturning of Roe is a "dangerous and chilling decision" that will have devastating consequences in Florida and across the Southeast.

"This ruling eliminates the federal constitutional right to privacy around abortion, but the Florida state Constitution still protects that right. The Florida 15-week abortion ban, which will go into effect July 1, is clearly unconstitutional, which is why Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida and other plaintiffs are suing to stop it. We will not sit idly by while our freedoms are stripped away like this — we will not stop fighting for our rights.”

The protest will take place at 1 Central Ave. in downtown Sarasota adjacent to Selby Public Library. For full details visit the Women's Voices Facebook page.

Samantha Gholar covers social justice news for the Herald-Tribune and USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at sgholar@gannett.com or on Twitter: @samanthagholar

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Roe v. Wade protest against abortion ruling tonight in Sarasota