ROCK AND TERROR AT THE CAPITOL BUIDING: A Day at an Indiana Abortion Demonstration

July 2022, a thick layer of clouds blotted out the sun as I crossed downtown Indianapolis. Bustling streets filled with the shouts of pedestrians and the honking of rushing vehicles drowned out the cries for justice coming from just a few blocks away. When I arrived at the capitol building with my wife a small swarm of people had already shown up to show their abject horror at what our elected officials were discussing doing. We paced the grounds of the building as the mob grew in size from a picket of invested activists to a horde of citizens demanding their rights be upheld. Soon a much smaller counter-protest would form around the grounds calling for Hoosier women to become walking incubators. Eventually, caravans of police would infiltrate the lines, staring daggers at all present and practically foaming at the mouth at the thought of someone making a wrong move so they could begin an assault. This was one of many protests that sprang up in the aftermath of the overturning of Roe v Wade.

The month prior our Supreme Court announced its decision to overturn the precedent after much nail-biting anticipation from both sides of the controversy. A woman's right to abortion and in fact her bodily autonomy was suddenly stripped away, leaving it up to individual states whether the practice would be made illegal or not. In red states like Indiana, it seemed all too obvious from the time talks of overturning Roe v Wade began which way our politicians would vote. Sure enough, a few weeks later our representatives were meeting to cast their votes on the matter. If the talk going around was to be believed then this day would be one where Hoosier women were kneecapped by their government.

The first hour of the protest was lackluster at best. I found myself sitting on a curb outside the capitol building waiting around for the turnout I had been expecting. Some booths had been set up on the sidewalk down by the street where people could sign petitions and join mailing lists. More information and aid booths would continue to come as the day wore on. The crowd did eventually start to grow, once it had reached a considerable size a line formed around the building. Now interest in the scene was beginning to be shown. Camera operators and reporters dotted the street corners each giving a recycled description of what was going on hand tailored to match their viewers' feelings and opinions. Helicopters swooped overhead catching shots of the trip down below for local blotters to publish the next day. Soon thousands of protesters had lined up around the square carrying signs, shouting chants, and demanding that they be heard.

This was not embraced or even ignored by all. From passing cars people hissed and jeered at what we were doing, easily as many as the ones that were expressing support for our cause. In time counter protests began popping up across the street. Some of these were made up of religious types expressing their god's opinion on the subject and how in their eyes it should be law. Some were people who just didn’t believe in abortion demonstrating their feelings on the subject. Some were blatant fascists dressed up in military regalia and patches in support of alt-right groups and in a few cases Russia for some reason.

As the words being hurled across the street between the two camps became more venomous the police on duty became more militaristic. In the early hours of the protest metropolitan police strolled around among us mostly minding their own business chatting it up with their buddies. They did laps around the capitol on golf carts sleepily reminding everyone to please stay out of the street. As the protest swelled, so did the police presence. Soon cruisers were running up and down the streets loaded with cops keeping trained eyes on the crowds ready to pounce at a moment's notice. Black helicopters joined and then replaced the news choppers in the sky. They flew low over the grounds like big brothers all seeing agents. Eventually, men in full riot gear could be spotted peppered in among the sea of people. The situation was all too reminiscent of Chicago in 1968. One wrong move and we certainly would have been looking at a scene mirroring the aftermath of the Democratic convention.

At long last the final move of the protest came, the doors of the capitol building were opened and we were allowed to file inside to make ourselves heard. The line wrapped around the building began to trudge, after maybe forty-five minutes we had made it to the bottom of the steps from one of the back corners of the square. A pulsing throng moved in and out of the building like thrashing tidal waves. A statement had been made, an example of the feelings of the populace put out for our representatives to see. The only thing left to do now was wait and see if they would listen. As we drifted away from the place where we had made our stand my fellow demonstrators seemed gleeful at the turnout but not hopeful about the results

This would prove to be the proper feeling to hold as the votes were cast later that day. The news broke, the state of Indiana had outlawed abortion making ours the first state in the country to pass anti-abortion legislation after the overturning of Roe v Wade. Although our new laws would prove not to be nearly as imposing as those passed in some other states it is impossible to deny the gut punch Indiana women took that day.

We came out, we made a stand, and we made our voices heard but in the end, the system still did exactly as we all knew it would. Perhaps this demonstration was doomed from the start, in fact, the majority of us showed up already certain of how the vote would go whether this protest happened or not. What were we to do though? Take this obvious spit in the face lying down? Smile and clap as individual liberties were erased? It is better to have risen to a challenge and failed than to have turned your back and failed anyway. The day may have been lost but the fight is long from over. To this day rallies are being held statewide demanding that Hoosier women have their rights restored to them. In time I believe things will swing back the other way. One day this country will stop taking steps backward and resume pushing forward in the pursuit of justice for all of its citizens. Until that day we must continue to make our voices heard. Shout in the face of oppression, demand your owed rights as an American. If we won’t stand up for ourselves, nobody else will.

Dusty Hayes is an indigenous writer and psychedelic advocate living in Indianapolis, Indiana. He spends his days there engaging in Broad Ripple's bohemian culture. He never pursued a higher education in writing, choosing instead to hone his writing style independently. He writes about social injustice, mindful living, and psychedelia. Recently he has published his first book Rock and Terror : A Psychonomic Look at the Effects of Psilocybin. A gonzo journalistic documentation of a mushroom trip that gives the reader a full rundown on the substance and its effects. You can find him and his work on Twitter and anywhere ebooks are sold.