Bans Off Our Bodies Protests For Abortion Rights, Happening This Week In Corning, NY & Kingston, NY - Happening This Weekend In Kingston, NY & Poughkeepsie, NY

Abortion rights supporters will continue to gather for a “Bans Off Our Bodies” day of action in support of abortion access and reproductive freedom. We won’t go back!

“The events are part of a nationwide response after a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion revealed the court soon plans to overturn Roe v. Wade and eliminate constitutional protections for abortion rights - a move that would likely lead 26 states to swiftly ban abortion.”

When:

Centerway Square, Corning, NY from 8pm-9pm TONIGHT, Monday, June 27

YWCA, Kingston, NY from 6pm-7pm Tuesday, June 28

Academy Green Park, Kingston, NY at 11:00am Saturday, July 2

Corner of Main & Market Streets, Poughkeepsie, NY at 1:00pm Saturday, July 2

#wewontgoback

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Bans Off Our Bodies Protests For Abortion Rights, Happening In Newburgh, NY Tonight

“On Friday, June 24th, in Newburgh, NY, Rhinebeck, NY and nationwide, abortion rights supporters will gather for a “Bans Off Our Bodies” day of action in support of abortion access and reproductive freedom.

The events are part of a nationwide response after a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion revealed the court soon plans to overturn Roe v. Wade and eliminate constitutional protections for abortion rights - a move that would likely lead 26 states to swiftly ban abortion.”

When: Friday June 24th, 2022

Rhinebeck Village, corner of Route 9 and Market St. from 7pm-8:30pm

Downing Park, Newburgh at 7:30pm

Centerway Square, Corning, NY from 8pm-9pm

Dewitt Park, Ithaca, NY from 8pm-9pm

Nassau County Courthouse, Mineola, NY from 6:30pm-7:45pm

Union Square, New York, NY from 8pm-9:30pm

Congress Park, Saratoga, NY from 8pm-9pm

YWCA, Kingston, NY from 6pm-7pm on Tuesday, June 28

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Sister Women's March Rally/March-In-Place Scheduled For October 17 In Beacon At Pohill Park

A reader wrote in to alert us to a rally happening in Beacon that they wanted to attend, and were surprised to learn was happening. The reader stated: “I will be a new resident of Beacon in October, and I've been following your blog to get to know the community. Thank you for providing such a fantastic resource! I don't know if you promote events like this but I wanted to call it to your attention. I went to sign up for the Women's March on Oct 17 to protest the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett for SCOTUS & was planning to march in Manhattan. But, I was pleasantly surprised to find that out of the 2 marches planned in the state of NY, the other happens to be planned for Beacon, NY.”

According to Forbes.com, additional marches supporting the main Women’s March in Washington, D.C., include over 100 satellite marches happening in 39 states, with more than 70,000 people who have pledged to participate.

The march-in-place event in Beacon is hosted by Southern Dutchess Resist, a group who organizes many rallies, including the first Black Lives Matter that happened on the sidewalk in Beacon, which was followed by the next, and larger march down Main Street by a group of young people who united to become by Beacon4Black Lives. The two organizations have since worked together to plan education and protest events, along with other organizations in the region, including 854Unity, Label Foundation, Next Step Hudson Valley, and others, to bring awareness to different issues.

How The March-In-Place Rally Will Work

Location: Pohill Park, on the corner of 9D (Wolcott) and Main Street.
Day: Saturday, October 17, 2020,
Time: 2-4pm
No walking. A rally. Marching-in-place.

This rally is in support of, and in defense of, Women’s Rights. Participants can bring signs that express different messages. Parking is available in free municipal lots, which include City Hall, but not the fire station. Regarding behavior, the organizers say: “This is a peaceful rally in community. Profanity and the like is not condoned - verbally nor written.”

Social distancing will be encouraged, with masks. Bring your hand sanitizer.

Please do not ask shops to use their bathrooms. You can go shopping, however! So bring your wallet as well. Need a face mask from a boutique in Beacon? Visit A Little Beacon Blog’s Shopping Guide, where we indicate which shops sell face masks.

Details about Beacon’s rally can be found here.

Tampons and Pads Are In The Budget As Normal Bathroom Needs In New York State

Photo Credit: Kayleigh Metviner

Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, whose district includes the Hudson Highlands, personally spent $37.16 of his own money to supply restrooms at his office with tampons, as reported by the Highlands Current. However, the first time he submitted that $37.16 as an expense for reimbursement, he was denied. According to the article, the Committee on House Administration told Maloney “that tampons were not office supplies but personal-care items that did not qualify for reimbursement.”

“Recognizing that [pads and tampons] are just another bathroom supply is recognizing that women’s needs are human needs. ”

— Kayleigh (Metviner) Zaloga

That was in July of 2018. In February 2019, after an election changed the balance in the U.S. House of Representatives, Maloney challenged this logic, resubmitted the expense, and won. Members of the U.S. House can now purchase feminine hygiene products for their offices. The House Office Supply Store will also stock the feminine hygiene supplies.

According to a quote in that Highlands Current article, Maloney stated: “I want to make sure every office on the Hill is welcoming to female staff and visitors — and thanks to the generosity of the American people, they will be,” the Democrat said in a statement. “This issue is part of a much larger discussion about women’s rights in the workplace and the way women’s needs are treated.”

“We're Lucky That Men Sometimes Need Toilet Paper.”

While Maloney’s move is at the federal level, we reached out to a state worker and writer for A Little Beacon Blog, Kayleigh (Metviner) Zaloga, who added that pads and tampons had also been added to state offices this year as well. She provided the photos used in this article as proof that the feminine hygiene products had arrived and had been set up.

“I think it's an important step in the march toward gender equality,” said Kayleigh. “Sounds dramatic, I know, but the need for feminine hygiene products is simply non-negotiable, so recognizing that they are just another bathroom supply is recognizing that women's needs are human needs. If men needed pads and tampons, we wouldn't even be discussing whether or not they were included in the category of bathroom supplies. We're lucky that men sometimes need toilet paper, so it's been stocked in all bathrooms by default.”

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New York School Districts Required To Supply Free Feminine Hygiene Products In Bathrooms

In July 2018, New York State law required school districts to supply feminine hygiene products for free in schools serving grades six to twelve. This was part of Governor Cuomo’s Women's Opportunity Agenda.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today reminded school leaders of a new law requiring all school districts, serving students grades six through twelve, to provide free feminine hygiene products in restrooms. As the school year begins, this new law will ensure all young women across the State have equal access to these essential products.

The governor sees this as “a step in addressing the issue of inequality and stigma. As the school year begins, we're reminding school districts to make sure that these items are provided to students.” Additionally mentioned in the governor’s press release reminding schools to supply these resources: “Research from the World Bank demonstrates that girls' inability to manage their menstrual hygiene in school results in absenteeism, which in turn has severe economic costs on their lives.”

It should be noted that even teachers and staff need feminine hygiene products just as much as they do toilet paper and paper towels to wipe hands after washing. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney’s move to make these products normal in the bathrooms of politicians’ offices may have a normalizing effect in many other areas.