A petitioner approached me early on and asked, “Care to sign the petition to protect choice?” I smiled and replied, “I’m pro-life. But I support your right to do what you’re doing.” He smiled back and wished me a good day.
The Cincinnati suburb where I live leans conservative, but its historic downtown area, where the petitioners are working, attracts visitors of all stripes who are drawn to dining, biking and kayaking on the Little Miami River.
I introduced myself a few days ago to one of the petitioners and asked how he and his fellow signature gatherers were being received. He acknowledged the effort in this particular area was challenging on some days, but the foot traffic made it worth their time. He showed me multiple pages of signatures collected just that day.
State law requires enough signatures to be gathered from half of Ohio’s 88 counties by July 5, so avoiding the more conservative regions was hardly an option, he noted. He added that aside from one time when a man threatened to call the police, people had been respectful regardless of their stance on abortion.
My discussion with the petitioner was unlike the heated conflicts we often imagine when people on opposite sides of issues — especially abortion — interact. We were friendly as we calmly discussed the legislature’s controversial attempt to change the amendment threshold from a simple majority to a 60 percent of the vote as well as other issues — including recreational marijuana, which he noted could be an upcoming ballot issue. After a few minutes, we wished each other well, shook hands and parted amicably.
Similar scenes, I am sure, play out every hour at this spot on days when petitioners gather. I walk the path two or three times a day, and I often notice the signature gatherers in animated but respectful conversations with passersby. Some people sign the petition, and others politely decline while debating the merits of abortion or Ohio’s method of amending its constitution. Obviously, I’m not there every minute of every day, but I’ve seen no angry shouting matches, no need for police to break up fights. Spirited but civil interactions are the norm.
Abortion remains one of our country’s, and my state’s, most contentious issues, and the Supreme Court’s decision a year ago in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization has reignited passions. Ohio did not technically have a “trigger law,” but just hours after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a judge lifted an injunction against the state’s 2019 “heartbeat bill,” which prohibited most abortions after six weeks. That ban led to the widely reported case of a 10-year-old rape victim who traveled one state away for an abortion, although some state officials said she qualified for an exception. Since then, the ban has been paused by the courts.
As a pro-life advocate, I know how I will be voting come November. But I also know that my beliefs on the issue are losing ground, and there’s a chance Ohio will follow the lead of states that have voted with the pro-choice side on similar measures.
I support the concept of citizen initiatives or referendums, but as a believer in representative democracy, I worry about abusing the practice. We elect people — whether to school boards, city councils, state legislatures or the U.S. Congress — to represent us. Yet, as evidenced by increasingly raucous local government meetings and the popularity of citizen-led ballot initiatives, people on all sides are doubtful that representative democracy is working.
So I’ll respect the process and the outcome of November’s vote on the constitutional amendment — and then I’ll continue voting for pro-life candidates. That’s how it should work — peacefully, respectfully and democratically, as I’ve witnessed the petition drive unfolding in my town working. We all need to understand that while we may sometimes be adversaries, we don’t have to be enemies.
