A different kind of torch was passed Tuesday at the First Congregational Church in Eugene — it was not passed for athletic achievement, but for the achievements of women, men and organizations that have helped women gain control of their right to choose.
Traveling through the latest cold-wave, nearly 130 people attended the event sponsored by the ProChoice Coalition of Oregon to light candles and show their support for the 29th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.
A number of state and city representatives were in the crowd, along with several other representatives of pro-choice organizations. Each candlelighter had his or her own reason for lighting one of the 29 candles.
“We’ve got to remind our President and remind our U.S. Supreme Court and remind our fellow citizens that reproductive choice is a core freedom; it’s a fundamental value and it is a cherished right for all of us,” said Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury.
Bradbury also reminded the crowd that if President George W. Bush appointed an anti-choice justice, it that could swing support in the Supreme Court toward a recall of the Roe v. Wade decision.
“We know we are at the crossroads. We know that for years that the Supreme Court’s support for Roe v. Wade has, in fact, been eroding,” Bradbury said.
After his speech, Bradbury began his candlelighting. “I light this candle for the children of this country, may they all have the comfort of a loving home and family. Every child should be a wanted child,” said Bradbury.
City Councilor David Kelly lit his candle “in memory of all the women who prior to Roe v. Wade did not have a choice,” and “for all the women who survived back-alley abortions and for those who did not.”
City Councilor Betty Taylor lit her candle for all the pro-choice activists in the Eugene community.
“Working together, we can reassure that women all over America have a choice. We will continue to organize and defeat anti-choice legislation. Oregon women deserve a choice,” Taylor said.
The tone of the event was quite clear: There isn’t going to be any negotiating for a woman’s right to choose, that history and facts of abortion show reasonable support for the right to choose, and that people need to speak out and show support for pro-choice issues and measures.