MILWAUKEE — One year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to abortion, both pro-life and pro-choice advocates took to the streets across the state of Wisconsin.
In Milwaukee, community members and activists gathered at Red Arrow Park for a National Call to Action for One Year Without Roe. Led by a grassroots organization, Reproductive Justice Action Milwaukee(RJA-M), people rallied for legal access to abortion and marched downtown.
“It’s been a year since thousands of people showed up in the streets. We want the message to be known that we are still fighting, that there are still movements, and no matter if the ban gets overtaken, there’s still more work to be done,” Lauren Forbuch, chair for Reproductive Justice Action Milwaukee, said.
While people gathered in Milwaukee, this was a national day of action. Joined by several other local organizations, Reproductive Justice Action Milwaukee made three demands.
- Reinstate Roe v. Wade and codify abortion access
- Federal funding for reproductive and women’s health
- Public access to contraceptives and menstrual products
For some people that marched through Milwaukee, the fight for legal abortion access started far beyond this past year.
“I marched for Roe in 1973 when I was in college. This is a long fight, and the most important fights are the longest,” Cheryl Juech, a marcher, said.
Reproductive Justice Action Milwaukee is a grassroots organization fighting for reproductive justice for all humans.
At the same time, in the state capitol, ProLife Wisconsin hosted the third Annual March for Life Wisconsin to commemorate the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling that overturned Roe. People gathered in Madison to rally for life.
Gracie Skogman works with Wisconsin Right to Life and reflected on the past year.
“People are very excited to celebrate the one-year-anniversary. Lives have been saved here in the state,” Skogman said.
In the next year, she said the organization hopes to increase funding to pregnancy centers while providing more resources to women in need, like housing.
“We know that now, more than ever, there are women in Wisconsin who are in need of comprehensive support when facing a challenging or unexpected pregnancy,” Skogman explained.
Split across the state, opinion is also split across the nation. A new NBC News poll finds 36-percent of people agree with the Supreme Court’s decision and a majority, 61-percent, disagree when it comes to how people feel about the Roe v. Wade decision being overturned by the Supreme Court.
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