Hundreds of anti-abortion protestors planning to gather Saturday outside the Equality Health Center in Concord typically hold signs proclaiming “Defend life,” and “Abortion hurts everyone.”
The annual march in the city’s downtown will occur just days before the 44th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Roe v. Wade.
In response, the health center’s staff and their supporters will line a sidewalk of South Main Street in counter-protest with their own signs that read “Keep abortion legal” and “My body, my choice.”
The Right to Life rally dates back decades, while the clinic’s counter-demonstration began just several years ago.
The clinic’s executive director, Dalia Vidunas, said Thursday that she expects this year’s turnout to surpass prior years with 75 to 100 participants.
“I remember the days when I was not allowed to get birth control because I was an unmarried woman,” Vidunas said. “What Roe v. Wade did is it gave us the ability to finally have say over our own bodies, and that can never be taken away. I continue to fight and be part of this because I never want the generations after me to go through what I went through.”
As both sides prepare for Saturday’s event, a federal appeals court in Boston has upheld a New Hampshire law that prohibits people from protesting within 25 feet of facilities that provide abortions.
No clinic has set up a buffer zone, even though the law has been on the books since 2014. In its ruling Wednesday, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston said anti-abortion activists have no standing to challenge the law because, with no buffer zones in place, their protests have not been affected.
The buffer zone wasn’t on the minds of clinic staff Thursday; rather, they commended a city permitting process in which both sides now engage prior to the march to ensure greater safety for all involved.
The clinic’s outreach coordinator, Lakayla Harris, explained that this year provides the opportunity for pro-choice advocates to use the public space in front of the facility to stand up for their cause. This means anti-abortion protestors cannot march in those same areas along South Main Street, and must instead take a circuitous path around the center. Next year, they’ll have prime footing in front of the center.
Vidunas said the city continues to be responsive to the emotionally competing viewpoints and has given both sides equal play.
Concord Police Department’s Deputy Chief Keith Mitchell said a police detail has been hired for the event, and that the city’s officers will respond if requested for service calls.
New Hampshire Right to Life will begin its day with a memorial service, which will be followed by a Catholic Mass at St. John the Evangelist. The rally at the State House steps will begin at 11:15 a.m., after which marchers will proceed to the Equality Health Center.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report. Alyssa Dandrea can be reached at 369-3319, adandrea@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @_ADandrea.)