The counterprotesters weren't ready to end the conflict just yet, however. They heckled the march as it moved. One young man even pulled out a can of spray paint and defaced a "Defend Roe" sign held by an older woman.

"They are coming for all of us"
Once the abortion rights rally had safely moved away, Heights addressed the crowd, expressing disappointment in Seattle's response to the growing abortion crisis. "Every single school did not shut down. Every single freeway did not shut down, with people flooding into the streets and standing in solidarity with the seven million women of Texas who no longer have this right, the right to control their bodies or their own lives or their futures," Heights said.

"They are coming for all of us. They think Roe is going to fall, and then the blue states are who they're going to target next, because they think that is where the abortions are going to be happening. Are we going to let them come for us?"

The crowd echoed energizing chants led by Heights and began to march downtown. Supporters cheered the rally on from building windows and sidewalks. Construction workers stopped volunteers to ask questions about the event and quickly became supportive, joining in on chants.

Heights explained the connection Resist Fascism has with international organizations, and the support Colombian organizers have sent to Seattle, advising citizens to take to the streets with grassroots organizations.

"We're wearing this green bandana, because it's going to be a national day where everyone is wearing green," she called out to the crowd at an intersection. "This symbolizes the struggle in Colombia."

"One of [the Colombian] organizers sent us a solidarity message," she added, "and they said a lot of struggle happens in the legal arena, knocking on doors in the legislative arena, and getting votes, but when it came down to it, the tipping point [there] was people in the streets, day after day. They tell us that if we do that too, we can win, and that's what this is the beginning of."

Supporters' stories
Supporters took to the streets, all with different stories and reasons they felt called them to walk out for abortion rights.

"I don't want to be out here marching, but you know, it lit my fire, man. I was, like, I gotta come out here," said Purpelle. "I'm here to support abortion rights or pretty much women's rights, because this is my thing here. Forced motherhood is female enslavement. I also think about women that were raped and [victims of] incest and everything else under the sun. Why would you force someone to go ahead and have that baby? It feels like we're going back in time."

A majority of the crowd seemed to be students walking out of universities like the UW, high schoolers attending their first protest, and even a few middle school students taking a stand.

"I'm walking out from school," said one student, Sunny, who explained why they felt compelled to join the cause. "It's heartbreaking, because these are medical procedures. They're not for fun; these people need them. Unless you have a uterus, you shouldn't be making laws about uterus reproductive rights."

Another student, Noel Poltronieri, said she was walking out of Lincoln High School for "so many reasons." Armed with a sign and the support of friends, she said she was taking a stand in solidarity with Americans whose reproductive rights are now under attack. "To start, it's just a matter of not letting men control something that should be a human right," she said. "Fuck it. We have to resist it 100%."

"This is about controlling women"
Heights led the protesters down to Westlake, pausing for a physical demonstration in which they all lay down in the street, blocking traffic. At Heights' call, the protesters took to their feet to "rise for abortion rights" and continue the march to Pike Place Market.

As the procession closed in on more crowded downtown streets, reactions began to change. Some on the sidelines called out slurs and disagreement with the abortion rights movement. The energy of the crowd did not waver, however. Middle fingers saluted men on the street calling out objectification, and an infectious wave of empowerment seemed to spread throughout the gathering.

Once again, the march paused, this time in front of the iconic Public Market sign. Heights addressed the crowd again. She acknowledged the youth who had left school to protest and praised them as the future humanity needs. She then addressed the younger generation, specifically those who do not remember a time before Roe v. Wade.

"We're finding out a lot of people have never been taught what it was really like before Roe v. Wade, when women did not have this right, what happened, and why we say, 'When abortion is illegal, women die.' It is all incredibly abusive. Don't let the antis tell you anything about the violence of abortion. That is bullshit," she said.

Heights addressed common arguments made by pro-lifers, such as the rights of the unborn. "We're talking about embryos, we're talking about clumps of cells. And [when] we're talking about when women decide late in their pregnancy to have an abortion, you can better believe there's a really good reason for that. And we support them," she said.

"We value their lives as whole human beings. And we're not going to live in a society where half of that population, half of that society, half of humanity is held down and held back and treated as less than a fetus, as less than a clump of cells, as not having humanity."

Heights finished her speech by calling on spectators and protesters alike to rise and continue the conversation about abortion, and to prevent conservative legislators from coming after liberal areas like Seattle.

"We're not living in that world, and that's why we're rising today, and this needs to be the beginning of calling many more people into this, because we know that their agenda goes far beyond where they are right now," Heights said.

"Don't ever let them tell you this is about babies. This is about controlling women," she added. "This is about controlling people who are pregnant and making sure that they do what they want to their bodies. This is about your body becoming the property of the state when you're pregnant and being forced to have children against your will. Forced motherhood is a form of enslavement. It's been normalized the way that rape has. Fuck that. They're trying to take us back to the Dark Ages, and no one is going to stop this except for us, so let's keep on talking, let's keep on marching, let's go!"

The march concluded with a hike back to Westlake, where speakers shared stories and united in solidarity for those currently impacted by antiabortion laws.

"This is not the end," Heights reminded listeners. "We're hitting the streets again on April 9th, so mark your calendar. This cannot be done with just a few organizers. We need hundreds of organizers around the country calling people into the streets."

The next event is expected to be bigger, which Heights hopes can help draw the attention of legislators.