Thursday, September 30, 2010
Current Events NOW protests Right to Life dinner
Posted by Keelee Hurlburt on Thu, Sep 30, 2010 at 4:55 PM
- Image by Keelee Hurlburt
- Protestors outside of the Indianapolis Convention Center waved their signs to draw attention to their pro-choice message in response to the Right to Life dinner being held inside.
More than 1,000 dinner guests attended the 28th annual Right to Life dinner at the Indianapolis Convention Center on Tuesday. But so did a small contingent of 11 protesters, who set up shop on the corner of Capitol and Maryland, neon signs held high.
The demonstrators, an energetic assortment of students and community leaders, were protesting the event’s featured speaker, Lila Rose, a UCLA student activist who founded LiveAction, a pro-life organization geared toward her peers.
While the protestors were representing the National Organization for Women (NOW), not all of them claimed allegiance to the group.
Weston Bonczek, a junior at Butler University, falls into the latter category and attended the event because he believed doing so embodied “sticking up for what is right.”
Despite the controversial nature of the subject, Bonczek said that the group had received “a lot of really positive support,” adding that many people honked and waved in solidarity as they drove by.
The honking and waving of passing cars was part of the organized chaos that permeated the protest. The demonstrators, lead by NOW member Katie Blair, chanted their message at a deafening volume while they waved their signs, whooping and cheering at every display of support.
At 6:30, the demonstrators folded up their signs after 90 minutes of protesting and headed home. “Thank you all for your help! You’re awesome!” Blair shouted with a wave as she left.
Although the NOW protestors dispersed before the Right to Life dinner actually began, their presence did not go unnoticed.
“Michael Reagan didn’t get any protestors!” Pat Sullivan, the evening’s MC, joked as he introduced Lila Rose to the assembled crowd.
Rose herself was not quite as gracious, managing to slide in an ironic dig comparing the size of the Right to Life dinner with the “maybe 11 protestors outside.”
Dinner guest Sandy Williams, a 68-year-old Indianapolis native, was also less than pleased with the protestors she encountered on her way into the building.
“I guess they have a right to [protest],” she said, “but it’s hard not to be prejudiced or biased.”
Protestor Morgan Humphrey, 25, realizes the conflicting viewpoints NOW is up against and acknowledges that the chances of the protest changing the mind of anyone who was attending the Right to Life event are slim to none.
“However,” she added, “to the general population, our presence opens up the issue for discussion.”
Readers also liked…
-
At least 40 arrested in Hyatt protest
Hotel workers and their supporters united in an act of civil disobedience against Hyatt Hotels, resulting in dozens of arrests.
- Jul 22, 2010
-
Hotel workers Unite HERE
Hotel workers in Indianapolis protested in front of the Hyatt building downtown in order to raise community awareness about unfair working conditions.
- Nov 14, 2010
Comments (4)
Showing 1-4 of 4
why were they protesting lila rose? just because she was speaking at the pro life dinner? what did she do exactly?
like
dislike
They were protesting Lila Rose because she is working towards closing down Planned Parenthood locations around the country, including Indianapolis.
I respectfully urge everyone who clutches to a positive opinion of Planned Parenthood to spend some time viewing Lila Rose's undercover video footage and then spend some time being honest with themselves about their opinion.
http://liveaction.org/
If that is not enough, please google "Margaret Sanger", uncover the ugly truth and again spend some time being honest with yourself.
Sanger only wanted to weed out the filth in our society. That is why she wanted to legalize abortion. And by killing one's babies, one agrees with her belief that the death of that innocent child will make the world a better place:
"Murder Makes A Better World."
