CLEVELAND — Both Women's March Cleveland and Right to Life of Northeast Ohio reacted after a Hamilton County Court Judge granted a preliminary injunction to keep Ohio’s abortion ban blocked indefinitely as the lawsuit filed by the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the American Civil Liberties Union continues through the courts.
It's a decision that will again allow abortions in Ohio through 20 weeks gestation for now, and continue to block Senate Bill 23, enacted in June that restricts abortion after 6 weeks gestation.
Meghan Morris-Raymond, who is a Fairview Park mother of three, who attended Women's March Cleveland, told News 5 she applauds the ruling by the judge and wants her two daughters to have the right to choose.
"I’m so glad, at 6 weeks most women don’t even know they’re pregnant," said Morris-Raymond. "At least for a while these women will still have a choice.”
Kathy Wray Coleman with Women’s March Cleveland told News 5 this year's march will take place on Sat. Oct. 8, starting from Market Square Park, across from the West Side Market at 1:30 p.m. Wray Coleman told News 5 reproductive rights will be the key issue during the march, along with a series of core issues.
“It’s about women’s rights period, it’s about equal pay, it’s about racism, sexism, jobs, education," Wray Coleman said.
But Denise Leipold, a board member with Right to Life of Northeast Ohio, told News 5 she's confident Senate Bill 23 will be upheld and prevail against the ongoing constitutional legal battle.
“Abortion has become a political issue, and it’s really not," Leipold said. “Abortion isn’t the problem, it’s a lot of the existing morals and values in our society, where you think you can just go have sex and if you have a kid, get rid of it. This is going to teach more people to be responsible and to think of this ahead of time, because I think every woman should have the right whether or not to have a child, but she should think of that before she does something that leads to having a child.”
Leipold also stated that she supports women's rights.
“I’m all for women’s rights, I’m a woman, I mean I want equal opportunity in this world just like everybody else, but abortion isn’t a right, you’re playing God over ending the life of child," she said.
