Clinic escorting is intense and exhausting, with escorts often facing harassment while ensuring the safety of patients. In a rare and entertaining moment, a patient at an East Coast clinic left antis speechless with a sharp, humorous retort.
By Allie
This happened at a clinic on the east coast.
Clinic escorting is intense, draining. It requires dedication. Escorts work for hours to fight and keep people safe. Escorts are out in the rain, snow, heat. It can be overwhelming and exhausting.
Frequently, at women’s health clinics, people are followed, insulted and threatened. They are judged and harassed for receiving health care. It causes anger, frustration and fear. But sometimes, through all of this, entertaining things happen.
A woman walked from the subway toward the clinic. As escorts, we watched as she came toward us, making sure the antis left her alone. As soon as they walked toward her, we got involved.
The antis started telling this woman she is a sinner. She is killing her baby. She is going to hell. It went on.
The antis told her that she would get breast cancer if she had an abortion. They just talked at her, non-stop, as we walked from the subway to the door.
This patient was assertive and did not seem anything but annoyed with the antis. That type of reaction is rare at clinics like ours. Many times, patients are overwhelmed.
Escorts walked with her to the door to make sure she entered the clinic safely. While they were screaming at her, in a quiet voice, she told the antis she was getting medical treatment. They told her she was a sinner.
As this patient walked in the door, she turned around and yelled, while laughing, ‘I am here to see a gynecologist. I hope all of you get yeast infections for the rest of your lives! All of you!’
I laughed out loud because it was not what I expected.
The antis had no ‘come back’ for that.
The women looked down as they were, perhaps, a bit sympathetic. The men had no idea what that meant. They were uncomfortable and suddenly silent. It was great. That silence did not happen often.
I am sorry that the woman who came in was interrupted from receiving medical treatment. And I am very thankful she made us laugh and the antis shut up, at least for a moment.
-Allie