On Oct. 2, hundreds of women’s rallies and marches were held across the country in response to the implementation of a new restrictive abortion bill in Texas. This bill, titled the Texas Heartbeat Act, would ban abortions from being performed as soon as six weeks into the pregnancy and any persons aiding in performing or acquiring an abortion that did not meet the requirements of the bill would be held liable for a minimum of $10,000. The bill has been both widely criticized for its limiting of women’s body autonomy and praised by proponents of the pro-life movement.
On Sept. 22, a member of the Florida House of Representatives introduced a bill similar to that passed in Texas called the Florida Heartbeat Act. In response to the introduction of this bill, more protests popped up across the state, including one taking place on Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale.
In association with the Women’s March, a national organization that aims to protect and advocate for women’s rights, protestors met in Huizinga Plaza located in downtown Fort Lauderdale for a rally before taking to the streets and marching. The rally included many guest speakers, including Nicki Fried, a lawyer and politician who is currently serving as the twelfth commissioner of agriculture and has announced her bid for governor in the 2022 Florida election.
The pre-rally included women sharing their stories with birth control and healthcare, politicians promising their support to protect women’s rights, local organizations offering free water and volunteer sign-up sheets and organizers getting the crowd fired up.
The pre-rally lasted an hour, and after the pre-rally the group took to the streets to protest. Local artists made signs so that most people had something they could carry. The group marched down Las Olas Boulevard, right past the NSU Art Museum, and concluded back at the Huizinga Plaza.
