It is always interesting to see what newpapers do with the counter protestors at abortion-related marches. The rule of thumb at pro-abortion-rights marches is that reporters lock in on the strangest anti-abortion activists they can find. The standard picture is of a row of screaming men in hard hats or, perhaps, a silent line of appropriately dressed priests and pastors. The key word is "men."
So I returned to Google this morning to see how many mainstream reporters mentioned the "Silent No More" protestors, an organization for those who have experienced abortion and now -- as their signs always say -- regret making that choice. (The photo is from an earlier demonstration.) These women are frequently seen at public events, but rarely in news reports. They are not the anti-abortion demonstrators of choice, especially for TV news.
At first glance, it appeared that the main New York Times story included a reference to the "Silent No More" women. However, the version of the story that is currently online no longer includes this edgy material (even though it shows up on Google). If there are readers in the New York City area, did this passage make it into the local dead-tree-pulp edition?
However, there are newspapers out there that did not -- for whatever reason -- go back and edit out that section of the original New York Times report. Here, for example, is a reference from the Omaha World-Herald:
Several hundred counter demonstrators also gathered along the march route. Deborah Cardamone of Pittsburgh held up a cardboard tombstone bearing the names of women who had died from abortions. Among the victims was her daughter, Marla, who died in 1989 at age 18 after an abortion.
Cardamone, a member of Silent No More, an anti-abortion group of women who have had abortions but are now opposed to the procedure, said her daughter felt as if she had no other choice but to get an abortion.
"I am just here to represent her and all of the other women who didn't have a choice," she said. "She was murdered along with my grandson."