NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) – Catherine Donaghy from Northampton remembers when Roe v. Wade first protected the right to an abortion.
She said when she heard Friday’s Supreme Court Decision, she was outraged.
“This is the time for action,” she told 22News outside Northampton City Hall. “We can’t sit back and watch this happen.”
Massachusetts is one of a number of states that will continue to allow abortions.
In 2020, the ROE Act was passed in the state. It allows abortions up to 24 weeks and expands the list of exceptions for a person to get an abortion past that timeframe, including “fatal fetal anomalies”.
It also lowered the age a person can get an abortion without parental consent to 16. Myrna Maloney Flynn is the President of Massachusetts Citizens for Life.
She said the focus is now on the state level to overturn laws that allow abortions.
“We still have an uphill battle to fight and we will continue to fight up that hill for as long as it takes to protect each and every unborn human life,” she told 22News.
Thirteen states have “trigger laws”, basically banning abortions now that Roe v. Wade is overturned. Deborah Pastrich-Klemer has organized pro-choice protests in Northampton.
She worries about what this will mean for people in those states, and the people who don’t have the means to leave to get reproductive care.
“I’m beyond childbearing years but it affects all women,” she told 22News. “It’s taking away our rights. We’re not being treated as humans and not as equal humans.”
Deborah organized Friday’s standout at Pulaski Park and expects to hold another protest in the near future.