January 19, 2008
San Francisco's 4th Annual Walk for Life, Counter Demonstration
"May the fetus you save be gay!" Eight Nevadans literally just off of the bus from Reno ran a gauntlet of counter-demonstrators on the Embarcadero. Larger version of this photo here. Complete gallery here.
We told you it was coming. The Fourth Annual Walk for Life West Coast went down today. A huge crowd of people showed up. From where? All over. See which cities here.
Didn't seem as contentious as in years past. Read IndyBay's take on it and see some photos if you want. Speaking of photos, we've got ten more after the jump. See you there.
Walk for Lifers, locked arm in arm, Selma style, and the horse they rode in on. From Reno to Hell in about four hours on a bus.
Tommi Avicola Mecca, Italian, Queer, Dangerous, played guitar for the small crowd gathered for the pro-choice counter demonstration.
Hang a left at the priest. The Walk for Lifers might have preferred to have their rally closer to the Ferry Building, but clever pro-choice locals got a reservation for their own rally with a quickness this year. The two groups were well separated.
The costs for all this? About $50 a second in overtime and related expenses, mas o menos. Hey, who pays for that?
How many people came to the Walk for Life? Tens of thousands, a huge crowd this year.
Alveda King, self-proclaimed "reformed murderer" and niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
The Stanford Students for Life were there.
A local militant vegan youth complete with AK-47 assault rifle iconography and a brakeless fixed-gear bike. Surprise! He's a "Vegan 4 Life."
It took about 45 minutes for all the Walkers to exit their rally area. They outnumbered the pro-choice counter demonstrators by about thirty to one (maybe more), it seemed.
You got to keep 'em separated. The SFPD did a good job today doing just that.
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You're potshot on the SF bicycle elite may be null.
I see no evidence that his bike is, in fact, brakeless. If you recall, brakes can also be on the front (which you can't see in this pick).
To get technical, the front brake is the only one that really matters.
shit! you're and your.
I think the real SF bicycle elite tend to have eight, nine or ten gears attached to their back wheels, instead of just the one.
This bike had no front brake - that's what would make it safe(r).
No back brake neither - that's what would make it "street legal"
No nudity? What is the point of a San Francisco protest if there is no nudity.
these people will eventually blow themselves or our city up in protest. why are we letting them march here? they are terrorists!
This article was correct in that:
1. Pro Life marchers were out in force!
2. The police did an outstanding job, as they did last year, in keeping the 2 groups apart.
3. Tommi Avicola Mecca played to a "small crowd."
But the writer fails on the following:
1. Since when are LIBS worried about govt spending money? $50 a second should make LIBS HAPPY! LIBS love govt spending $!
2. Out of towners? Hello... I'm a 5th generation San Franciscan and I had my daughters with me (which naturally makes them 6th generation for those of you w/metal studs in your mouth). I guarantee that much of the rabble - you call counter protesters - are also from "out of town". I'm sick of SF being the magnet (dumping ground) to all of the misguided in the US aka for SF natives: BUMBS! Do San Franciscans a favor: STAY HOME! DON'T COME HERE. WE DON'T WANT YOU HERE!
3. Despite the 30k pro-lifers that showed up it somehow (for the local press) was not newsworthy I recall how 18 demonstrators at City Hall seeking city funded sex change operations got front page coverage! There's your $50 a second!
This article was correct in that:
1. Pro Life marchers were out in force!
2. The police did an outstanding job, as they did last year, in keeping the 2 groups apart.
3. Tommi Avicola Mecca played to a "small crowd."
But the writer fails on the following:
1. Since when are LIBS worried about govt spending money? $50 a second should make LIBS HAPPY! LIBS love govt spending $!
2. Out of towners? Hello... I'm a 5th generation San Franciscan and I had my daughters with me (which naturally makes them 6th generation for those of you w/metal studs in your mouth). I guarantee that much of the rabble - you call counter protesters - are also from "out of town". I'm sick of SF being the magnet (dumping ground) to all of the misguided in the US aka for SF natives: BUMBS! Do San Franciscans a favor: STAY HOME! DON'T COME HERE. WE DON'T WANT YOU HERE!
3. Despite the 30k pro-lifers that showed up it somehow (for the local press) was not newsworthy I recall how 18 demonstrators at City Hall seeking city funded sex change operations got front page coverage! There's your $50 a second!
Liberal ideas do not include spending money with abandon. In fact, the Democrats are the only ones who ever seem trustworthy with our public funds in general.
Give me a break. Republicans are ALL for spending money with abandon. That is, as long as the money is going for bombs and other military paraphernalia with which to murder people. People who once started out as feti, I might add. Shoring up our own educational/healthcare systems? Yeah, you're right, they're fiscally conservative as hell on that.
Until I see right-wingers making any sort of an effort to care for all these kids once they clear the birth canal, (i.e., adopting multiracial, mentally damaged crack babies) then they can all kiss my ass.
I love the women who take advantage of abortion rights and then try to take that right away from other women.
This so-called "life" movement's agenda is to control women. Period.
well said blue. the republicans are no better than the democrats. that's why i call them republicrats.
why can't we have a real 3rd party choice in this country?
I'd say most of the marchers came from the greater bay area.
but it's noteworthy that lots came from out of state or from the southern part of the san joaquin valley
while you say the pro-life folks outnumbered the pro-choice people, i think it's important to note that some groups, like planned parenthood, chose to simply ignore the walk and funnel that energy into a positive way.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4176/is_20070119/ai_n17152411
So noted. It just seems that the numbers were more evenly matched in prior years.
Could be that this is becoming less of a big deal for one side and more for the other.