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Ashland, Oregon HOME Valley & State Sports Nation & World Opinion/Editorial Classifieds Business Columnists Local Issues Obituaries Weather Archive Revels Etcetera Backpage Hot Topics Most Viewed Forum Photo Galleries Video Readers Polls O-Zone Online Games Movie Preview Special Sections Real Estate Guide Menu Guide Shakespeare Subscribe Contact Us Rate Card Place an Ad April 20, 2005 Abortion foes picket Planned Parenthood Reception from passers-by is lukewarm at best By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings Holding oversized photos of partial-birth abortions and signs stating “Abortion is Murder,” five people demonstrated against abortion on the sidewalk in front of the Ashland Planned Parenthood clinic for 90 minutes on Tuesday afternoon. Demonstrators stand outside the planned parenthood clinic on Siskiyou Boulevard as part of a 90-minute protest Tuesday during lunchtime. Orville Hector | Ashland Daily Tidings “We pretty much go wherever the Lord leads us,” said a Grants Pass man who would only be identified as Kevin. “We just want to stop the murder.” People honked and yelled from moving vehicles and several pedestrians confronted the demonstrators, who said they were “just a group of Christians,” on the corner of Siskiyou Boulevard and Walker Avenue. Early in the demonstration, an Ashland Police Department patrol officer came by to ensure the protest remained peaceful because a man walking down the sidewalk had kicked one of the partial-birth abortion photos and argued with the demonstrators. “Usually it’s just us,” said a 33-year-old Central Point man named Rick who has been protesting abortion since he was an eighth-grader. “The main thing is, we’re peaceful. If they talk to us, though, we’re going to reply.” One man riding his bike up the sidewalk slowed near the group of demonstrators and threatened the group. “Those are gross pictures. You’re scaring kids,” he said, telling them he had been smoking marijuana and was about to park his bike so he could “come back and beat you.” Kevin reached for the cell phone in the right hip pocket of his jeans. The man anticipated the phone call and told Kevin to make it because “it’s only 10 days in jail (for possession of marijuana).” As the man rode away on his bike, Nancy Nerenberg walked out of the clinic and thanked the demonstrators. Driving up Siskiyou Boulevard, she saw them standing on the corner and stopped to make a donation to Planned Parenthood. She had read about a man who had fought anti-Planned Parenthood groups by giving money every time they made an appearance and decided to do the same. “I’ll keep doing it,” Nerenberg said. “I think they should let people make their own decisions.” The demonstrators distributed pamphlets produced by STOPP International, a project of the pro-life educational organization American Life League. The STOPP pamphlets state Planned Parenthood harms women, is anti-Christian, spreads the doctrines of secular humanism, teaches perverted sex education and is the nation’s largest abortion provider. “It’s not about birth control,” Kevin said. “It’s about life.” Planned Parenthood clients still entered the clinic during the demonstration, which began at 11:30 a.m. and lasted until almost 1 p.m., clinic staff said. “The irony is we don’t do abortions,” said Paul Robinson, the community relations coordinator for Planned Parenthood Health Services of Southwestern Oregon (PPHSO). “What they’re protesting is a woman’s right to reproductive health services. ... Why anyone in their right mind is opposed to that is beyond me.” The new 2,400-square-foot clinic opened in mid-February. Demonstrators said they’ve picketed in front of the building three times since Planned Parenthood started offering services there. Staff writer Jennifer Squires can be reached at 482-3456 x 3019 or [email protected]. --> Copyright © 2006 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.