'We will do it together' Hundreds rally for abortion rights in Sioux Falls Sunday
Despite excessive heat and humidity, hundreds of people stood in the shade of the trees in front of the Minnehaha County Court House for a protest against the United States Supreme Court reversal of Roe v. Wade on Sunday.
The protest, organized by Planned Parenthood and the South Dakota ACLU, called attention to how pregnant people and those with the ability to get pregnant would be harmed by the mid-June decision that has left abortion access up to the states.
In South Dakota, a trigger law meant that abortion was no longer legally obtainable in the state.
More: Abortion is now illegal in South Dakota. Here's what you need to know.
"There's nothing pro life about letting pregnant people die of preventable deaths," Kim Floren, a co-founder of JEN, the Justice through Empowerment Network, which helps pregnant people get access to abortions.
Floren added that South Dakota is the second-largest maternity care desert in the nation, meaning people lack access to maternal health care options.
Others spoke about how people of color have already been impacted by people in power making decisions about their bodies.
"There was forced sterilization that happened to both men but primarily women in the 1970s," Serene Thin Elk, who works at South Dakota Urban Indian Health, said. "To once again to have these things come upon us where we seemingly don't have a choice and don't have a voice. We actually do very much have a choice and have a voice and we need to continue to stand up for what we know is true and right despite the cycles of oppression continue."
Jett Jonelis, the advocacy manager at the ACLU, added that it was already known people who faced barriers to healthcare would be disproportionately harmed by the Roe decision.
"No one should have to leave their home and their state to obtain essential time-sensitive health care and many people will not be able to do this," they said. "This has never been just about abortion. It's about control, state control of our bodies and our futures."
For Kristin Hayward, the advocacy manager at Planned Parenthood North Central States, Sunday's protest reminded her of an earlier rally in October.
"We didn't have this happening to us. We didn't lose our rights. We still had rights in front of us in our own state and now they're gone," she said. "It's devastating. It's terrible."
Hayward received cheers as she talked about how angry she was with Gov. Kristi Noem.
More: Will Sioux Falls doctors be charged for performing abortions? Here's what we know.
Tori Storm stood in the crowd looking up at the speakers like Hayward. Dressed in green, she said she was terrified about what the overturn of Roe meant for her daughter.
"If my daughter is pregnant and something [happens] I could lose her," the 60-year-old retired special education teacher said. "It's just not right."
Storm wasn't the only one dressed in green. The use of the color can be traced back nearly two decades to the abortion fight in Argentina, according to National Public Radio. Organizers said they chose green because it was a symbol of "hope, health, life."
Argentina legalized abortion nationwide in 2020, and the "Green Wave" has continued to spread internationally.
Before the crowd broke from the courthouse to take to the sidewalks in front of Van Epps Park, Jonelis had one last parting message.
"While the courts are letting anti-abortion politicians attack our fundamental rights, they don't get the final say. We do," they said. "No matter how long it takes, we will win this fight and we will do it together.
Follow Annie Todd on Twitter @AnnieTodd96. Reach out to her with tips, questions and other community news at atodd@argusleader.com or give her a call at 605-215-3757.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Hundreds at Planned Parenthood, ACLU abortion rights protest in Sioux Falls
