To this crowd, the issue is one of personhood. SF rally organizer, Pastor Walter Hoye, explained that the issue of personhood resonates especially deeply not just with him but with all Blacks who can remember the pain of being denied personhood. The denial of personhood to an unborn child is consequently a viscerally understood outrage:
Pastor Hoye's passion for this issue was awakened with the premature (6 months, 2.1 lbs.) birth of his son which taught him that "the fetus is a person, a living, breathing human being."
Standing outside the HHS building, speakers led the crowd in chants of "We will not, we cannot, and we must not" stand for this HHS mandate. Civil disobedience was widely discussed. This woman below may be smiling, but the crowd takes the message very seriously:
This was the second in a series of three nationwide rallies to Stand Up for Religious Freedom. The group responsible for it in San Francisco is the California Civil Rights Foundation.
The speakers were impressive. This is Gwen Patrick, currently a candidate for State Assembly in the 52nd district:
Pastor Antoine Miller spoke with passion about Obama's general assault on religious liberty:
Using rich historical detail, Rochelle Conner put this battle into the context of American tradition:
The crowd was enthusiastic:
This sign reads "Respect the first amendment":
Some in the crowd understood that religious freedom is one of many constitutional rights that are under attack by the Obama administration. Others were perfectly happy having the government control their lives just as long as these particular HHS mandates were repealed. In either case, they now understand that Obama is an enemy of religious conscience.
PREVIOUSLY:
Has a second front opened in the war for freedom?
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