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We Can't Turn Into the US. That's Why We Protested Against the March For Life in Central London. A Photo Essay
On 6 September, Abortion Rights UK gathered their pro-choice supporters to show the far-right, anti-abortion activists that they have no right in what a person with a uterus does with their body.
Parliament Square, Westminster. It’s a sunny early-autumn day in Central London. In the heart of British Parliament, the square is absolutely packed. In the centre, activists are protesting against the UK Government’s prescribing of Palestine Action. As a result, their mere cardboard placards declaring their support for Palestine Action result in a squad of cops seizing each participant by force and placing them under arrest.
Many resist their detainment and, as a result, are carried by all four limbs out of the crowd by the posse. Journalists race to the scene, aiming their cameras at each detainee. All as the crowd shouts ‘shame on you’ towards the police. It is absolute chaos. Over 1,000 people who were part of the march ended up being arrested that day.
I had entered what would be London’s most-reported, polarising event for the week, perhaps even the whole of September, by accident.
I had shown up to honour my right to access reproductive healthcare, whilst a whole mass of extremists had decided to march through the city to tell everyone that they shouldn’t have the right at all. To stand back and say ‘respect other people’s beliefs’ would be an act of fawning. Especially when they’re not protesting what happens to their own bodies-they’re protesting what should be happening to your body, too. Whether you like it or not. And throwing holy water at you for wanting that autonomy. Literally. This happened to us.
A protestor holds a sign condemning the arrests of Palestine Action supporters. 6 September 2025, Parliament Square, Westminster.
In the corner of the square in the shade, upon a growing herd of pink-vested Abortion Rights protesters, a massive TV with a grown fetus is glued to the screen. An hour later, the March for Life mob came walking down the street
A March for Life Representative tries to interview protesters from the counter-protest. The majority of pro-choice protestors are encouraged to decline to comment with the knowledge that the reporter is likely there to argue with them or tease them instead of actually wanting to hear their opinion.
March for Life UK ( who have recently been identified in a New York Times article to have ties to ADF International, who helped to overturn Roe v. Wade in the US), define themselves as “a Christian pro-life organisation which incorporates three main annual events promoting their cause as well as a continuous mission comprising three key aims. These being: raising awareness, fostering community and inspiring people”. They want to raise awareness that, in their opinion, abortion causes unnecessary damage and that life begins at conception. They promote community among fellow pro-lifers and aim to convert others to become pro-life. As quoted from their website.
They believe abortion is causing damage to the UK as a nation and is unfair to women. They have proceeded to state that many women are not only being encouraged not to have abortions, but those who are prescribed abortion pills are being traumatised by the reality of having to dispose of their dead child once the pregnancy has been terminated.
According to the NHS, a pill-induced abortion causes the termination of a pregnancy by causing heavy bleeding and blood clots that allow the pregnancy to pass through the vagina. This is prescribed to women less than 10 weeks pregnant.
According to the well-known American organisation, Planned Parenthood, it’s very easy to miss any visibility of the pregnancy tissue being expelled if the pregnancy is under 8 weeks. Therefore, someone legally taking abortion pills when prescribed by a qualified health professional is very unlikely to dispose of a human body if they choose to terminate their pregnancy.
An abortion rights protestor chants against the March for Life crowd.
Abortion Rights UK define itself as the UK’s national pro-choice campaign. They are “campaigning to defend and extend women’s rights and access to safe, legal abortion. We oppose any attack on the 1967 Abortion Act, including any attempt to lower the abortion time limit. It’s more than 50 years after the introduction of safe, legal abortion in Britain; women’s rights should be advanced, not driven back.”
They aim to oppose any restrictions to women’s rights and access to abortion, improve the current abortion law for women and improve women’s access to abortion nationwide.
Protestors part of Abortion Rights side
As the March for Life came to an end and both protestors came face to face, predictable hostility arose. Our side began a series of chanting, ‘pro-life is a lie, you don’t care if women die’. The pro-lifers react by shoving crucifixes in our direction and throwing spits of holy water into the crowd.
The March for Life makes it clear throughout its closing ceremony that its beliefs are grounded in Christianity. After arranging a variety of speakers, including religious leaders and individuals who survived botched abortions, they say a prayer to end all abortions. Just prior to their prayers, co-CEO, Isabel Vaughan Spruce, announces to her audience that “pro-life and pro-abortion idelogy cannot coexist.” Our chanting drowns out their shallow prayers.
March for Life isn’t a new organisation. But in a Trump-dominated world and nation threatened by far-right political upheaval and the ADF’s early-days alliance with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, their presence is no longer a joke. It’s a threat. It always has been a threat. America’s abortion crisis is living proof.
Nobody wants to get an abortion. Abortion is healthcare. And as a supporter’s sign read on our side: “The Earlier the Abortion, The Better”.
*Originally posted on Punky Daydreams' Substack, 15 October 2025
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