Ventura County groups denounce, praise Supreme Court draft decision on abortion
The leaked U.S. Supreme Court's draft decision indicating the possible overturning of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling is being met Tuesday with local demonstrations by outraged abortion-rights advocates and praise by anti-abortion groups.
The demonstrations were scheduled for 5 p.m. One is at the corner of Thousand Oaks and Westlake boulevards in Thousand Oaks. The other is at the corner of Telephone Road and South Victoria Avenue in Ventura, outside the county government center.
About 150 people, mostly women, were gathered at the Thousand Oaks site as of 5:30 p.m. They hoisted signs on both sides of Thousand Oaks Boulevard and received honks of support from passing drivers. At times they could be heard chanting, "My body, my choice."
The draft decision was leaked Monday to Politico. The Supreme Court said Tuesday it did not represent the court's final view. Roe v. Wade established a constitutional right to abortion.
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"I'm outraged by this draft decision from a male-dominated court," said Linda Beck-Kuban, 71, a board member of activist group Women United for Change, which, along with another activist group, Indivisible: Conejo, is sponsoring the Thousand Oaks demonstration.
"Not that I was surprised," she said. "If you weren't surprised, I would think, 'Where have you been?'"
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But Michele Loughman, executive director of Life Centers of Ventura County based in Ventura, welcomed the draft decision.
"We've been waiting 50 years for this day," she said. "It's a great day for America to be moving back to a stance where we are willing to extend to the most vulnerable segment of our population the blessing of life."
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Miriam Mack with Justice for All Ventura County, one of the activist groups sponsoring the Ventura demonstration, said she hopes such protests "will cause the Supreme Court justices to recognize that it is wrong to overturn a 50-year precedent and will not make the draft decision final and that women deserve the right to make their own decisions about their health."
But Katie Short, an Ojai attorney with the anti-abortion Life Legal Defense Foundation, based in Napa, said the potential overturning of Roe v. Wade is "long overdue.
"The Supreme Court had no business wading into this area to begin with 50 years ago," Short said. "It was an unjustifiable decision that had no basis in the Constitution."
The court's final opinion was not expected until June or July. It's not clear whether the leak will change that timeline.
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USA Today and the Associated Press contributed to this story.
Mike Harris covers the East County cities of Moorpark, Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, as well as transportation countywide. You can contact him at mike.harris@vcstar.com or 805-437-0323.
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This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Local groups denounce, praise leaked Supreme Court opinion on abortion
