DENVER—Calling Sen. Barack Obama’s views on abortion “radical,” protest groups said Wednesday they plan prayer vigils during the Democratic National Convention to bring attention to the issue.
The groups said their main event will be encircling the Pepsi Center, site of the convention, with as many as 1,000 demonstrators who will kneel and pray for an end to abortions. They plan to leave roses on the sidewalk outside the arena Aug. 23.
The convention runs from Aug. 25 to Aug. 28.
“Sen. Obama, I never thought I’d say this, but he almost makes Sen. (Hillary Clinton) look pro-life,” said the Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney of the Washington-based Christian Defense Coalition.
Joining Mahoney’s group will be others around the country, including California-based Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust. They plan to hold rallies and other demonstrations downtown and at Denver parks.
“It’s time to stand up and cry out against abortion,” said Danielle White Versluys with Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust, which consists of people born after the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.
Mahoney accused Obama of opposing a partial birth abortion ban and planning to allow health insurance companies to pay for abortions.
Obama has pledged to protect women’s abortion rights. Representatives from Obama’s Colorado press office did not immediately return an e-mail seeking comment, and their campaign office’s voicemail system was full.
Mahoney said Obama would be “the most radical president ever, when it comes to abortion.”
“We will expose Sen. Obama as the abortion president,” he said.
The groups join a long list of other convention protesters planning demonstrations for various issues, including the Iraq war and immigrant rights.
