It Starts Here, But it's Not Ending Here:’ Rally Held in Towamencin to Protest Overturn of Roe v. Wade

Dozens gathered on the Towamencin Pedestrian Bridge Friday evening for the “We Won’t Go Back” march to protest the recent overturn of Roe v. Wade.  

Jenn Foster and Tina Gallagher are neighbors who organized the rally. They have been active with other issues in the past, including the sewer plant sale in Towamencin. Foster also attended a rally in King of Prussia in May when the initial SCOTUS opinion was leaked and wanted to mirror the sense of community she saw during that protest at a rally in her own community.

“In my generation, I've never had to worry about this right,” Foster said. “Even though it might not be a decision that I make for myself personally, it's not up to me to judge others and force my choice on that.” 

“In order to have voices heard in the community, I think it's a good idea to keep like-minded people together,” Gallagher said. “It helps amplify their voices.”

At around 6:30 p.m., protestors met in the parking lot behind the office building at 1690 Sumneytown Pike and passed around signs and water bottles.

They then walked on each side of the intersection on Sumneytown Pike, holding their signs up and chanting: “What do we do when we lose a right? Get up. Stand up. Fight. Fight. Fight.”  “Our bodies, our choice.” “It won’t stop with Roe.” 

Many passersby honked in support of the rally and rolled their windows down to cheer and raise their fists. Some in opposition yelled “murderers” or “save the womb.” One even threw a ball out their window at protestors.

Protestors later walked up to the bridge for a speech and held their signs up on each side.

In her speech, Foster said when Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973, the court used the right to privacy derived from the 14th Amendment. She also said, in addition to Roe v. Wade, gay marriage, sodomy, access to contraception, and interracial marriage were rooted in the right to privacy and are at risk.

“Nearly 75% of this country has lost confidence in [the Supreme Court] and this impacts all of us and we should all care about it,” Foster said. “While abortion may not be banned in Pennsylvania today, the state legislature is doing everything in its power to change that.”

Pennsylvania Attorney General and Democratic nominee for Governor Josh Shapiro vowed to protect abortion access and said he will veto any bill from the Republican-led legislature that would ban abortion, if elected. 

Shapiro’s Republican opponent, State Senator Doug Mastriano, supports a total ban on abortion and introduced a Heartbeat bill in 2019, which will require physicians to determine if the fetus has a heartbeat before proceeding with an abortion.

Pa State Rep. Liz Hanbidge was not able to attend the rally but told Foster that she is co-sponsoring legislation that would codify reproductive freedom in the state constitution.

Foster and other protestors encouraged others to vote in November and to talk to their local candidates and neighbors about reproductive freedom. They also had QR codes to help register people to vote. 

Dave Schuetz, 50, of Hatfield, is a member of the Hatfield Democratic Committee and pushed protestors to get involved with their local democratic committee.

“Pennsylvania is going to be next,” Schuetz said. “If we don't win the governorship, then we're going to have a situation where abortion will become illegal in Pennsylvania for all women and for all purposes. There won't be any exemption for the health of the mother or rape.”

Towamencin Supervisor Joyce Snyder, the sole Democrat on the Towamencin Township Board of Supervisors who won election in November by only 13 votes, was also in attendance and urged others to vote, using her experience to show that their vote matters. Snyder is also a victim of rape and was raped at 12-years-old.

“I did not get pregnant because I was 12 years old, but I cannot imagine the trauma of having to carry a child and raise a child that was a result of my rape,” Snyder said. “That would have been horrific. If I lived in another state, like Texas, I would.” 

For the remainder of the rally, protestors gathered at the corners of the intersection where they stood in the beginning. 

Cyndy Levy, 73, of Lower Gwynedd, was a young adult when abortion was prohibited prior to when Roe v. Wade was decided. She attended the rally after seeing the event on Facebook.

“I cannot believe what is happening right now in our country, and I can't stay home. I can’t not speak out,” Levy said. “I think the next year or two are going to be absolutely critical not only to our rights as women, but our rights and our democracy.” 

Amanda Kelly, 28, of Levittown, was raised in a Christian household and used to identify as pro-life but changed her beliefs over time. She said she felt a mix of emotions when she first received the news.

“Once it sunk in, I cried,” Kelly said. “When I found out how much the trigger laws were affecting on top of that, like in some states it's already affecting IVF, IUD, and birth control, I cried more.” 

Wendy Sheppard, 51, and Ethelda Makoid, 58, of Ambler, are a married lesbian couple. The two have considered moving out of the country in fear that more rights will be taken away, including their own right to be married. Gay marriage was legalized in all 50 states on June 26, 2015 — just about seven years ago. Sheppard and Makoid were together before gay marriage was legalized nationwide and had to get married in a different state. 

“It starts here, but it's not ending here,” Sheppard said.

Sheppard and Makoid expressed their disappointment upon hearing about the overturn of Roe v. Wade and how it led to a state of confusion on how the country could continue move forward.

“I don't even know how we recover from this. I don't know how we stop this ball from rolling and all of these rights getting rolled back,” Sheppard said. “It's taken how long to get here until this decision was made? How long is it going to take to get back?” 

“[I went] from complete devastation with a sense of loss that I haven’t felt since my parents died to a level of anger that is just deep inside because I look and I know we can be so much better,” Makoid said. 

Hope Ann Errington, 61, of Trappe, and Julia Ellis, 39, of East Norriton, are a mother and daughter. Ellis said that the overturn is beyond abortion rights and can impact access to birth control that help others like her regulate their menstrual cycles.

“Setting this precedent of overturning Roe v. Wade is opening up the door to overturn other rights that we have as women that can be detrimental to our health,” Ellis said. “For me, it's about health care.”

Around 80 people were at the rally at one point, including men and women of all ages, as well as some children. 

“When you organize something like this, it's either five people are going to show up or 500 — you just don't know,” Foster said. “We may wind up doing this again. I don't know these women. I know, maybe three or four people in this crowd, but we all [have] a sense of community. We feel like family, and we feel a kinship as a result of this opinion that came down.”

$100 was donated during the rally and forwarded to the PA American Civil Liberties Union.

Foster still has hope for the future and said voters have the opportunity to turn this into something positive and to elect legislators who will work for the majority.

“If I don't have hope, I don't have anything,” Foster said. “As discouraging as it can get sometimes, we as voters have the power to change this. It's not just about voting. It's about voting for the right candidate. It's about talking to your candidates and finding where they stand on all of these issues that are in jeopardy and making sure that you're voting for the right candidate.”