Organizers behind a mobile health clinic offering free abortions and vasectomies near where thousands are gathering for the Democratic National Convention in Chicago are fighting back amid outrage from conservatives.
Planned Parenthood Great Rivers announced it will bring its mobile health clinic to Chicago and offer free services to those who sign up on August 19 and 20, the first two days of the convention.
Before the clinic arrived, they announced that all appointments had been filled and that they would follow up if there were cancellations, but the move sparked an avalanche of criticism online.
“The goal was that we knew there would be tens of thousands of people coming in during this time, and we really wanted to showcase and highlight what’s possible when you have a state that supports reproductive access,” Dr. Colleen Nicholas, medical director of Planned Parenthood Great Rivers, told DailyMail.com.
Planned Parenthood Great Rivers brought its mobile health clinic to Chicago on August 19 and 20, offering free vasectomies and abortions just minutes from the Democratic National Convention.
“We’re really at a critical moment in public health where we really need to think about doing things differently, and mobile healthcare is one of the ways to do that,” he said.
On Monday, the mobile clinic had 12 patients scheduled for vasectomies. Over the course of two days, they expect to see 20 to 30 patients for medical abortions.
DailyMail.com was given access to see the inside of one of the two rooms used for patient procedures during the two days he is in town.
It included medical equipment and an examination table. Between the two examination rooms there was also a small waiting area, and the organisers set up a table outside to register people before they entered the mobile clinic.
A look inside one of two rooms at Planned Parenthood Great Rivers’ mobile health clinic, where vasectomies and abortions were performed this week in Chicago
Inside one of two rooms used for patients at Planned Parenthood Great Rivers’ mobile health clinic. According to Dr. Colleen Nicholas, they expect to see 20 to 30 patients seeking abortions in two days and had 12 vasectomies scheduled for Monday.
Dr. Colleen Nicholas was one of two doctors at the mobile clinic that offered abortions and vasectomies in Chicago during the Democratic National Convention. She said the mobile clinic that was featured did not have a political purpose, but rather to provide access
The clinic was set up a short distance from the Democratic National Convention, but outside the security perimeter. The clinic site is also where other organizations hold events in conjunction with the convention in Chicago, as Democrats gather nearby.
Nicholas dismissed outrage over the arrival of the mobile clinic in the city while the convention was taking place. He argued that they visit needy areas and are not at all linked to the political events taking place.
“We’re here simply to provide health care,” he said. “This health care is not a Democrat issue or a Republican issue. Really, it’s just about making sure that the people of this country have access to the things that they need.”
“We do things in a way that reaches people where they are and makes health care accessible,” Nicholas said.
In the same parking lot where the mobile clinic is located, several other vendors were preparing for events during the four-day convention.
Just a few metres away was a giant inflatable IUD known as the ‘Freeda Womb’.
A 5.5-metre-high inflatable IUD was installed just a few metres from the mobile clinic in Chicago. The giant inflatable is known as the “Freeda Womb”.
The arrival of the mobile clinic has been met with a fierce reaction online.
One woman wrote on X: “Handing out free abortions from a bus just blocks from the DNC is sinister.”
Another conservative woman posted a comment calling it a “literal bloodbath” and claiming it was “evil on full display by the DNC.”
The president of the Conservative Caucus wrote on day X: ‘THIS IS A CULT’.
Outside the gate where the clinic was located, several anti-abortion protesters carried signs. One sign read “it’s not too late.” Another sign claimed that abortions kill women.
After a dozen protesters gathered their belongings and left, a lone man stood outside the door shouting at organizers, including Nicholas, by name.
The installation of a mobile clinic offering abortions and vasectomies near the Democratic National Convention sparked outrage among conservatives, including Jim Pfaff, chairman of the Conservative Caucus.
A group of anti-abortion protesters gathered outside the door where Planned Parenthood Great Rivers provided free abortions and vasectomies.
At the Democratic National Convention, the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, which is dedicated to advocacy, had a booth and participated in convention events. Attendees passing by picked up brochures and lip balm.
Abortion access has been a top issue for Democrats since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022, ending abortion rights nationwide and returning the issue to the states.
Abortion access will be a prominent issue throughout the convention, having galvanized the Democratic Party base in a number of recent elections since Roe fell, and will be squarely on the ballot in several states, including battleground Arizona in November.
Several women are scheduled to speak during prime-time coverage of the convention Monday night about their own experiences of not being able to obtain abortions in states where the procedure has been banned.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at an abortion clinic in Minneapolis in March. She was the first sitting vice president to visit an abortion clinic. During her visit, she was accompanied by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who is now her running mate.
Vice President Kamala Harris has been a leading figure in the Biden administration on reproductive rights. She was the first sitting vice president to visit an abortion clinic while in office, when she went and spoke at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minneapolis in March.
On the campaign trail, Harris promised to restore abortion rights under Roe if elected president, and urged lawmakers to send her a bill.