Slippery Rock hears from both sides of abortion rights issue
SLIPPERY ROCK — Honking horns and shouting motorists along Main Street sent forth praise and venom to both sides of a peaceful protest and counter protest regarding abortion rights.
Morgan Seles of Slippery Rock stood alongside about 25 others holding signs supporting a person’s right to body autonomy with an emphasis on abortion rights.
“This is a hard time for us, but change can start small,” Seles said.
Two groups represented the pro-abortion rights side of the street, Slippery Rock Chalk Talk and Slippery Rock Huddle.
Seles said they weren’t expecting a counter protest, but they were not intimidated by one either, though she pointed out that a couple of members across the street were carrying guns with them.
Justin Green of Slippery Rock wore a tactical vest and had a rifle slung around his shoulder. He said his goal was not to intimidate those on the other side. He said having served in the military, he fought and believes in the right to peaceful protest.
However, Green said he arrived with a rifle in hand because he was concerned about possible escalated behavior after hearing some reports that the pro-abortion groups had protested in a disrespectful fashion over the Fourth of July weekend.
Green said he feels the other side is taking the issue out of context by claiming that all abortion has been made illegal by the recent Supreme Court decision.
“I feel they’re misinformed,” Green said.
In June, the Supreme Court overturned the landmark case Roe v. Wade, which had declared the right to an abortion a constitutional right.
The overturning of the 1973 decision did not make abortion illegal across the U.S., but instead gives each state its own power over making laws regarding the controversial topic.
Emily Keener, of Harrisville, and a member of Slippery Rock Huddle, said the core message was about a person’s freedom over their own body, as well as an exercising of peoples’ right to speech.
“Most of the people here aren’t students,” Keener said. “These young people are community members.”
Keener said in addition to spreading their message, they also assisted people in registering to vote.
On the other side, Zach Schearer, of Chicora, played brief anti-abortion statements into the mouthpiece of a bull horn.
Schearer accused the protesters of having defaced public property with chalk messages and flying the flag upside down. He said often the topic of abortion is portrayed only in a light favorable to those who are in support of the procedure.
“(The flag flying upside down) is a sign of distress, and I don’t think we’re in distress,” Schearer said. “People are only watching one side as fact.”
While both sides were disgruntled about their counterparts, all seemed to appreciate the presence of the Slippery Rock police, who stationed at least three units nearby.
Slippery Rock Borough manager Shawn Pugh spent some time checking in with the officers.
“We welcome both sides on this issue” Pugh said. “As long as they remain peaceful and orderly, they’re welcome to protest in the borough any time they want.”
Butler County Commissioner Kevin Boozel, a Democrat, stood alongside those protesting in favor of abortion rights. He said he couldn’t stand by as a constitutional right was so easily taken away, fearing more rights may vanish in the future.
Boozel said both sides are entitled to their opinions, but rather than seeing dueling words across the street, he would prefer to see conversations with understanding.
“We have to get along, and we have to figure it out,” Boozel said. “We have to work through it.”
The pro-abortion rights groups had scheduled two shifts for its protesters, starting in the morning and ending in the late afternoon. The counter-protesters appeared to match them, and some moments were shared across the disputed line of the street.
Later in the day, counter-protester Colleen West of Slippery Rock Township stood at the intersection of New Castle and Elm streets.
West said she felt strongly that the demonstrations during Independence Day celebrations last weekend were inappropriate because they disrespected veterans and because children were present.
”That's for their parents to teach them, not you,“ West said.
West said she respected their right to protest, so she exercised her right too.
Protester Jonathan Foust of Slippery Rock walked over to West, and the two sides had a lengthy conversation explaining their views.
"We didn't resolve anything, but I understood," Foust said.
Foust later came back and offered an ice cold water bottle to West, which she accepted.
"That's what people need to understand. That things like that can happen," West said.
