500 March Peacefully Against Abortion Group Prays At Planned Parenthood Clinic; Abortion Rights Advocates Rally At Church

The rallying cries of Spokane abortion protesters were sharp with images of violence, but their Sunday afternoon march to a Planned Parenthood clinic was quiet and peaceful.

Rousing about 500 people who gathered on the 24th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, the Rev. Jim Anderson of Lifeline Ministries prayed for power to stop the “killing.”

“God, give us the authority to wage war against this,” he said. “The key to this nation’s revival are not abortionists, prostitutes or bank robbers. The key is us.”

They marched from Fourth Memorial Church on Standard, then along Indiana, where they passed a silent line of 17 abortion rights activists.

That group linked hands with coat hangers to symbolize the “back-alley methods” used on women before 1973, the year abortion became legal in the United States.

Neither side exchanged words.

Police cars - marked and unmarked - were stationed along the march route. Officers in more patrol cars paced the demonstration, keeping passing cars away from marchers. Police were on heightened alert because of last week’s bombing at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Atlanta.

“It went perfect,” said Officer Jim Hoagland. “We’re very fortunate in this community to not have had anything happen.”

During the march, abortion protesters stopped to pray in front of the Planned Parenthood clinic on Indiana.

Each person placed a carnation on a baby-sized casket. Many shook their heads, made the sign of the cross or mouthed prayers. Others kissed their rosary beads, hugged their children.

With her flower in hand, Mary Mossee, 23, hummed a spiritual song as she walked toward the casket. The woman said she prays outside the clinic once a month with members of her congregation, Harvest Christian Fellowship in Spokane.

“We pray for change,” she said. “We’ll keep praying and hoping until our hearts are changed. It’s not so much about the law. It’s about our hearts.”

“More than 1,500 babies are killed at this clinic each year,” said Anderson. “Look at this place. It doesn’t look like a health clinic. It’s got fences and barricades all over.”

The fences and barricades were installed as a response to violence against abortion clinics, here and across the country. Planned Parenthood’s Spokane Valley clinic was bombed last year.

Also Sunday, about 60 abortion-rights activists from Lutheran, Methodist and Unitarian churches gathered on the front steps of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church on North Monroe.

They held a short prayer service to celebrate the Supreme Court decision.

Celia Petty, 48, of Spokane said she remembers a time when she and others who refer to themselves as pro-choice were not outnumbered during marches.

“Before abortion became legal, the numbers were reversed,” she said.

Petty traveled to Washington, D.C., for “loud and boisterous” demonstrations when she was in her 20s. The support now is a quiet kind, she said.

Leading Sunday’s service was the Rev. Monica Boyd Corsaro of Audubon Park United Methodist Church.

“We’re not pro-abortion,” she said. “We’re pro the safety of women seeking an abortion. Violence is being waged against people who are seeking a legal and safe practice.”

Boyd Corsaro said this year’s attendance pales in comparison to years past when 200 people came to the abortion rights rally.

“The numbers are down because people are afraid to come out, because of the bombings,” she said. “What’s Christian about bombings? You shouldn’t have to be in fear for a belief.”

A teenage anti-abortion activist agreed the violence must end.

“It’s not about jumping on a soap box, ranting and raving, or bombing,” said Tim Franey, 17. “It’s about being active in your heart. And showing love and support to whose who need help.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Photos (1 color)