Madame Vice President Kamala Harris did not mince her words Sunday in Tallahassee, Florida, on the occasion of her speech for the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. She spoke to a packed house, who cheered her wildly and booed even more loudly when she mentioned the perpetrators of the attacks on reproductive rights.
It was exhilarating to see her speaking on the home turf of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (aka Death Santis) who has big plans to become the Republicans’ next presidential candidate by out-Trumping the Former Guy, instituting harsh laws attacking everything from reproductive rights to Black studies, immigrants, and LGBTQ rights.
Harris was perfectly clear about who the bad people are:
“Last year, so-called leaders at the state House here in Tallahassee —passed a radical abortion ban with no exceptions even for the survivors of crimes like rape and child molestation and human trafficking. Here in Florida, healthcare providers face prison — prison for up to five years for simply doing their job. And now the state has also targeted medication abortion and even threatened Florida pharmacists with criminal charges if they provide medications prescribed by medical professionals.
And Florida is not alone. Twenty-two states have announced they will not follow new federal rules that allow women to get medication prescribed by their doctor from a certified pharmacy.
Imagine.”
It was a rainy day in Tallahassee, but that didn’t stop people who were determined to attend the event, which was held at The Moon, a popular local concert spot and nightclub.
As they waited for Vice President Harris to arrive, the attendees’ chants were directed at DeSantis:
I was particularly glad to hear Harris define “patriots,” snatching that term back from Republicans—the party that supports and enables traitors.
“… since our founding, we have then been on a march forward to fully realize our promise to complete the unfinished work to secure freedom and liberty for all.
Now, these outcomes will not be inevitable. They will not just happen. It takes steadfast determination and dedication. The kind of determination and dedication possessed by some of our greatest patriots: those Americans who fought a Civil War to end the sin of slavery, who organized at Seneca Falls to secure a woman’s right to vote, who launched the Freedom Rides to advance civil rights, and spoke out at the Stonewall Inn to defend human rights.
In each of these movements, those leaders expanded rights which then advanced the cause of freedom and liberty.”
Present at the event were Amanda and Josh Zurawski, who had a harrowing experience under Texas’ abortion ban, which Harris described.
“… for Amanda, a 35-year-old woman in Texas, it meant, in the midst of a miscarriage, she was denied treatment three times in three days at an emergency room because of that state’s abortion ban. And only after she developed sepsis, an infection that almost killed her, did the hospital finally admit her.
Thank God Amanda survived. And she, with her husband, Josh, is here today. (Applause.) And I want to thank them both for having the courage to tell their story in a way that will inspire so many individuals and their families to know they are not alone.”
Amanda tells her story in this tweet from Harris’ official account.
Harris closed her remarks with strength and conviction:
“Understand clearly, the majority of Americans — the majority of Americans oppose these attacks. Americans of every background, in every community have voiced their perspective: from Kansas to California, Michigan, Montana, Kentucky, and Vermont. They spoke with their vote.
In essence, they said, one does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree that the government should not be telling people what to do with their own bodies.
So know this: President Biden and I agree, and we will never back down. We will not back down. And we know — we know this fight will not be won until we secure this right for every American.
Congress must pass a bill that protects freedom and liberty. A bill that protects reproductive rights. And President Biden will sign it.
So, yes, America is a promise. A promise we must all make real in every state and every community, in every statehouse, in every doctor’s office, and, yes, in every election.
So to all the friends and leaders, I say: Let us not be tired or discouraged, because we’re on the right side of history.
So we will continue to stand together in the fight to protect the freedom and liberty of all people, of all women everywhere.
And here and now, on this 50th anniversary, let us resolve to make history and secure this right.
Today, I invite all Americans to join us, and to remember: When we fight, we win.”
For those of you who missed it, here’s the official White House stream, and a link to the full transcript of her remarks.
Let me repeat Harris’ closing words: “When we fight, we win.”
Let’s do this! Let’s fight. Let’s win.