The leaders of a pro-abortion rights rally in Peoria urged more than 300 demonstrators on the Peoria County Courthouse plaza not to become apathetic in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's expected rollback of Roe v. Wade.
"It's such a terrible thing for them to do. The inevitable still hurts," said organizer Christina Norton.
Women speaking through a megaphone at the rally blasted the conservative Supreme Court justices who voted Friday to overturn the nearly 50-year-old Roe precedent.
Some suggested term limits are necessary for the unelected justices serving on the high court. Others were concerned about future rollbacks of LGBTQ+ rights and contraceptive access, alluding to Justice Clarence Thomas' concurrent opinion filed with the Friday ruling.
Two women told their personal stories about getting abortions, and Peoria County Auditor Jessica Thomas urged people angered and concerned by the decision to vote in the upcoming Illinois primary.
Frustration and anger was directed not only towards the conservatives who have long waged a war against Roe v. Wade, but also the elected Democrats many of the protestors say didn't do nearly enough to protect abortion access.
More than one speaker at Saturday's rally in Peoria noted House Speaker Nancy Pelosi began fundraising off the decision hours after the ruling came down, suggesting that powerful Democrats care first and foremost about raising money off abortion rights, rather than defending them.
"Roe versus Wade being overturned was the result of 40 years of organizing by the right-wing, by evangelical far-right Christian groups," said organizer Anthony Walraven. "And again, voting is necessary, but not sufficient."
He said people have to act collectively for action to happen, rather than expecting elected representatives to act on their own.
"In 2008, the Democratic Party had a filibuster-proof majority in our government, and they could have codified Roe into law, and they chose not to," Walraven said. "So it's not just electing people. It's putting pressure on them. It's putting pressure on other points of power in our society, like the economy, to make sure we're listened to."
Protest organizer Christina Norton said elected Democrats aren't doing enough to push back against conservative efforts to roll back protections for women and others.
"They are falling down on the job, because they didn't protect Roe v. Wade when they had the choice. Their response so far has been lackluster. So yeah, we would like to see more out of them," Norton said.
Protestors were urged to assist groups which directly assist women seeking an abortion, such as the Midwest Access Coalition and the Chicago Abortion Fund.
The protest was organized by the Peoria Democratic Socialists of America. The group says it will continue to organize pro abortion-rights protests in the Peoria area.
