2 Planned Parenthood rallies in Austin

by: BeckyH

Wed Mar 14, 2012 at 07:54 AM CDT

What the heck's happening with our poor country?! Who knew that in 2012 in the USA we would be fighting about contraception and basic women's health?

Next Tuesday, March 6, and the following two Tuesdays, between noon and 2:00 PM, I am going to put on a red shirt and st...and in front of the Texas State Capitol at the corner of Congress Avenue and 11th Street holding a sign decrying the defunding of women's health services. I am calling my effort SEEING RED and it may be just me and a few friends or a few hundred. This is my own personal response to the outrage of the Texas Taliban's war on women and, peripherally, my sadness over the death of foreign correspondent Marie Colvin who gave her life to tell us about the inhumanity and injustice of those who target the powerless. My vigil is in honor of Molly Ivins who said nothing will change until we get out in the streets and bang on pots and pans. I'm just going to stand there and hold a sign (and a broadsheet with talking points).

By the way, this is not a "women's movement". Come one, come all.

Some of you have been in on the brainstorming that only began yesterday about this and you're the "core committee" of a completely unorganized movement. No keynote speakers. No podium. No PA. Just red shirts and signs. Spread the word.

Oh, and hey...peace.

Marcia Ball

all ages were there:

men as well as women:

more crowd shots, there were lots of people:

Then in the evening, there was another rally. The Planned Parenthood bus wat there, as well as every Travis County elected official who could be there. Austin musician Carolyn Wonderland wrote a song for the occasion:

Jimmy Dale Gilmore & his son Colin performed, too & were also great:

our mayor proclaimed it Women's Health Care Day in Austin:

crowd shot - if you look carefully, you see Marcia Ball holding up a sign with an 800 number to call the governor & tell him what you think:

there were several speakers - all fantastic. If we had been inside, I'd say the State Rep Dawnna Dukes tore the roof off the joint. And there was a woman whose name I forget, but she's apparently a liberal commentator on Fox News, she's from Austin.... anyway, she was fantastic also. Then came hometown hero Cecile Richards:

after she spoke, all the local luminaries joined her on the stage:

So the next time you hear someone saying one of the many mean things people say about Texas, remember these pictures & say that you know there are lots of Texans working to turn things around here.