Reaction to court decision mixed
Demonstrators on both sides of the issue gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court Friday to either voice their anger or support after justices ruled in a 6-3 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
You didn’t have to drive to the nation’s Capitol for passionate opinions on the ruling. Men and women in downtown Washington were vocal in expressing either their joy or dismay at the decision.
A survey of the local mood Friday afternoon revealed a rather even split in support or denunciation of the ruling.
“Everyone thinks it’s a ban,” said Austin Smith, of Washington. “It’s really just up to the states to decide. I think it’s right for it to be up to the states.”
Gov. Tom Wolf promised in an address to the commonwealth Friday that “as long as I am governor, I vow to protect abortion access and reproductive health care in Pennsylvania.” But abortion access in Pennsylvania ultimately rests in the hands of that state’s next governor.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano applauded the overturn of Roe v. Wade, while Democratic opponent Josh Shapiro decried the decision.
“Who would have thought that would be overturned? It’s a sad day,” said Gail Anwyll, of Canonsburg. “I think we are going back in time.”
Anwyll said abortion access does not affect her personally, but she worries about the world her grandchildren are growing up in.
“I’m of the age where I remember how difficult it was to get an abortion. It wasn’t pretty. I am not for the overturning of that. A woman who makes the decision lives with that the rest of her life,” Anwyll said. “Women are still going to make that decision. It’s all about being safe.”
Like Anwyll, Dr. Mary Jo Podgurski, founder of Teen Outreach, remembers the days before Roe v. Wade.
As a student nurse, Podgurski saw operating room schedules full of dilation and evacuation procedures. She asked a mentor what D&Es were.
“The woman told me, ‘Those are abortions.’ I said, ‘Abortions are illegal,'” Podgurski recalled. “She said, ‘Not if you have enough money.'”
That experience, coupled with witnessing women die from septic abortions, framed Podgurski’s stance on abortion.
“I am troubled by the fact that the state now has power over human beings’ bodies. If you look at it from that perspective, it’s scary,” she said.
Indeed, the implications of the Supreme Court’s decision are far-reaching. In his concurring opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas argued the rationale behind Friday’s ruling could pave the way to overrule gay marriage and the right to contraception.
Following the splash of headlines announcing Roe v. Wade had been overturned, most people were focused on the meat of the issue, which leaves abortion’s legality to the states.
“I’m glad it was overturned,” said Tim Kendzlic, of Arizona, who visited family and friends in his hometown over the weekend. “It should be the state’s decision.”
Kendzlic, a 1977 Canon-McMillan grad, noted there are inconsistencies in the definition of when life begins.
“If a pregnant woman is killed … it’s a double homicide,” he said.
Kendzlic’s brother, Bill, spent the weekend in town from Colorado for his high school reunion. The elder Kendzlic agreed with his brother and with the court’s ruling, but was more cautious in his assessment of the news.
“I’d like to think I have a definitive answer on Roe versus Wade, but I don’t. I don’t agree with abortions,” he said. But, “there are always gray areas.”
The matter is strictly black and white for Angie Veltri and her brother, Mike Veltri, both of Washington.
“There’s a lot of women that use it as birth control, and I resent that. Babies have a right to live,” Angie Veltri said.
Mike Veltri dissented.
“Every woman should have a right to choose what they do with their body,” he said.
Sue Cox, of Charleroi, views the issue through the same lens as Mike Veltri.
“I wouldn’t want to be raped … and have to carry that for the rest of my life,” Cox said as she waited for her ride along South Main Street in Washington. “I think women should have a right.”
While advocates on both sides imagined a post-Roe v. Wade future, at least one local woman was resigned to the ruling.
“It is what it is,” said Christina Bruce, of California.