CHICAGO, IL — Organizers and activists from the Party for Socialism and Liberation, Breaking the Chains Magazine, ANSWER Chicago, Code Pink, Make Noize for Change, and others will be rallying on Wed., May 11, at 6 p.m. to demand that Congress take action to legalize abortion during President Biden's visit to Chicago. The rally will take place on the same day as the planned Senate vote on the Women's Health Protection Act.
Last Saturday, May 7, thousands of people took to the streets of downtown Chicago and shut down Michigan Avenue to oppose the leaked Supreme Court decision that would overturn Roe v. Wade.
President Biden is planning to attend a fundraiser in Chicago on Wednesday where donors are paying up to $365,000 for a ticket. Instead of fundraising off promises to defend abortion, the Democrats right now could be taking real action to legalize abortion in Congress.
Earlier this week President Biden said, "It will fall on voters to elect pro-choice officials this November." The Democrats control the Senate, House of Representatives, and the White House. They have the power to make legal abortion the law of the land once and for all. Instead, they treat women's rights like a bargaining chip.
On February 28, the Senate voted on the Women's Health Protection Act, defeating the bill in a 46-48 vote. The WHPA, a landmark bill that would have enshrined the right to abortion access throughout the United States, narrowly passed by the House of Representatives in September 2021. This Wednesday, May 11, the WHPA will be up for vote again. While commentators expect the vote to fail, it will not be the end of the movement to defend abortion rights.
This Wednesday, May 11 at 6pm these organizations will gather again to demand that the Congress immediately pass the WHPA and take action to defend abortion rights nationwide. The organizers involved have led protests in Chicago and across the country in defense of abortion rights.
