National NOW Times >> Fall 2011  >> Article

Summer of Choice: What We Learned in Germantown

When Operation Rescue declared a "Summer of Mercy 2.0" outside the Germantown, Md., clinic of Dr. LeRoy Carhart, NOW made a commitment to stand proudly and peacefully for women's fundamental right to choose abortion.

The first "Summer of Mercy" took place in 1991, when Operation Rescue shut down the late Dr. George Tiller's clinic in Wichita, Kan., for weeks on end. As a friend from Kansas recently told me, "It was hell."

Scott Roeder, the man convicted of murdering Tiller in 2009, explained during his trial that while he did not attend that original Summer of Mercy, it did make him "more aware" of Dr. Tiller. For these reasons and many more, reproductive justice activists around the country took Operation Rescue's threatened actions in Germantown very seriously. Grassroots activists and organizations poured our time, resources and hearts into supporting a "Summer Celebration of Choice" from July 31 to Aug. 8.

From 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. (or later) every day, activists from 18 states stood out in 100-degree heat, intense pouring rain and everything in between to support Dr. Carhart, his excellent staff and the women they serve with dignity, compassion and respect. At many points during those nine days we outnumbered the antis. There was no violence, the clinic stayed open, and we did a great job representing the pro-choice majority in this country in the face of an onslaught of misinformation, lies and hatred.

Here are a few lessons made obvious during the Summer Celebration of Choice:

1. The so-called "pro-life" movement is explicitly, or at least implicitly, encouraging the killing of abortion providers. From the gentleman spotted wandering around the clinic several days mumbling about a gun, to the "truth truck" with Dr. Carhart's and Dr. Tiller's pictures driving around the immediate area, to the offer of $35,000 for anyone with "information" about Dr. Carhart, to the exploding gun chalked on the sidewalk outside the office complex, not once did we see leaders of Operation Rescue disavow the violent images, words and actions.

2. Keeping up a peaceful pro-choice presence is not always easy, but it works. Our goal during the week was to not engage at all with the anti-abortion rights extremists surrounding the clinic, and we did a pretty good job. It is not always easy when you are being screamed at or having a baby thrust in your face with an admonition that you would kill her. However, by not engaging we showed the community that the best antidote to terror truly is peace.

3. Young women are already leading the bulk of today's boots-on-the-ground movement for abortion rights, in truly intergenerational partnerships with older women. There is a lot of noise in the news media about younger feminists not existing, not caring about abortion rights, or being dismissed by older feminists. It would be nice if the reporters perpetuating that tired old storyline would have come to Germantown, because they would have seen that young women were the vast majority of those standing out in the streets -- in leading and not merely supporting roles.

Dr. Carhart noted after Operation Rescue went home that they prompted pro-choice advocates from around the country to get together and realize how strong we actually are -- an invaluable realization at a time of unprecedented attacks on a woman's fundamental right to control whether, when and how she might have children.

Excerpted from NOW Action Vice President Erin Matson's full story, which ran on rhrealitycheck.org