Peninsula/Palo Alto WILPF Supports Christine Blasey Ford at Vigil

Palo Alto Raging Grannies hold signs in support of their neighbor Christine Blasey Ford at a vigil held on September 23, 2018. Photo: Aric Crabb, The Mercury News, © Bay Area News Group, 2018.

By Judy Adams
Peninsula/Palo Alto Branch

Palo Alto was in the San Francisco Bay-area and national news spotlight recently for holding an evening vigil for Palo Altan Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, Brett Kavanaugh’s accuser. Local residents, including our branch members, proudly supported her at a candlelight vigil on Sunday evening, September 23. Local press estimated the crowd as close to 2,000 people, stretching out in four directions on the busy intersection that for decades has served as the city’s “free speech corner” (this is where our branch holds its weekly demonstrations for peace and justice issues).

It was a strong show of support and came just “hours after Ford’s lawyers confirmed that she would testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday,” despite Ford’s requests that the FBI do a thorough investigation of her charges against Kavanaugh before her testimony. (Palo Alto Online, Sept. 23, 2018).

WILPF women—and men—were there, participating energetically in the vigil. Pictured here are branch member Roberta Ahlqhist and her partner, Walter Bliss. Roberta said of her experience at the vigil; “It was a powerful and inspirational event with people of all ages, genders, and colors. This is what democracy looks like!" Member Ruth Chippendale (below, center, wearing a dark blue skirt) joined with the Palo Alto Raging Grannies to sing and lead chants in support of Dr. Ford and all women who have come forward with their stories of sexual assault.

Ruth’s commented on her experience at the vigil: “This is the largest demonstration I’ve ever been at. I kept running into young people I knew and others I haven’t seen in a long time. The people lined up as far as I could see on both sides of the street at the busy intersection. Young people from the high school, Stanford students, and people of all ages were there.”

Here, member Cherrill Spencer (front, right) appears to be leading a charge with other protesters calling for a fair hearing of Dr. Blasey Ford’s testimony at the hearings scheduled for Thursday, September 27.

Cherrill’s comment on the candlelight vigil was: “The vigil was well organized, with traffic monitors and people leading us in chants supporting Professor Ford. Other WILPF members who weren’t able to attend the evening vigil wrote postcards and letters of encouragement to Dr. Ford, and contributed to a GoFundMe campaign to support the Ford family’s security needs and other related expenses.”

On Sept. 27th, during the break in the hearings after Dr. Ford’s moving testimony, over 150 protesters took time away from the TV/radio/internet broadcasts to come to Palo Alto’s City Hall to participate in another rally in support of their friend and neighbor at a #WeBelieveChristina demonstration.

Protesters were joined by Palo Alto’s Mayor, Liz Kniss, who thanked them for their enthusiastic and peaceful assembly, where they carried signs, sang, and signed a long banner supporting Ford, and then marched briefly downtown before heading home to hear Kavanaugh’s testimony.

Mayor Kniss told the crowd that she was inspired by Ford’s honesty to talk about two sexual assaults she experienced decades ago and never publicly revealed until now: “I thought, if I can help anyone...if anyone is willing to come forward, we can start a movement that says ‘this happened.’ Well, I am trying to influence what's happening in Washington, no question.”

Even after the outcome of the week-long FBI investigation, with Kavanaugh’s nomination approved by the Senate on October 6, WILPF members will continue to join with the many protesters who support Dr. Ford, and will take action against the effects of the conservative “stacking” of the Supreme Court which will further erode justice and threaten the separation of the government’s Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches.

If you weren’t out there marching, we’re sure you were protesting and working in other ways to bring a new majority to Washington after the midterm elections. We all will continue to RESIST and work to foster peace, to protect the environment, and to restore the protections we have lost for women, the poor, and immigrants seeking sanctuary and a better life. There is much more work to do, but we can do it!

For more information, contact: Judy Adams at wilpf.peninsula.paloalto@gmail.com

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Inset photos:
[1] Roberta Ahlqhist and Walter Bliss, photo by Veronica Weber, © Palo Alto Online, Sept. 23, 2018.
[2] Palo Alto Raging Grannies, photo by Wes Chang, © 2000-2018 San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center.
[3] Photo by Teri Vershel, © 2000-2018 San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center.
[4] Hand signing a banner supporting Ford on Sept. 27. Photo: Aric Crabb, The Mercury News, © Bay Area News Group, 2018.
[5] Photo by Cherrill Spencer, Sept. 23 © 2018.