Our News & Commentary Blog

Disability Activists Take Direct Action To Resist Assisted Suicide Laws

By Diane Coleman | June 21, 2023

By Jules Good

On June 14th, NDY and Second Thoughts MA activists gathered at the Massachusetts State House to show opposition to a Compassion and Choices rally. The group made signs and held them up at the back of Nurses Hall, where C&C was hosting a lineup of local speakers before dispersing to meet with legislators to lobby for the passage of H.2246/S.1331 which would legalize assisted suicide in MA. Selected photos and descriptions are below.

STMA member Pamela Daly, as well as NDY’s Assistant Director and Policy Analyst Jules Good, were interviewed by the press. Pam’s interview was featured here, and State House News mentioned our presence and signs here.

Massachusetts’ legislative session moves much more slowly than in other states, so hearings for these bills may not happen for a few more months. We will continue to be in touch with MA legislators to ensure these bills do not pass through committee.

Do you live in MA and want to get involved with this important advocacy work? Reach out to John Kelly, Director of STMA and New England Regional Director for NDY, at secondthoughtskelly@gmail.com .

Seated Signs: left to right, seated: Pam Daly, a white woman with shoulder length hair in a manual wheelchair Ellen Leigh, a white woman in a power wheelchair with shoulder length hair, a mask and eyeglasses, Finn Gardiner, a black man with beard, glasses and a black hat, John Robinson (standing behind), a white man in a green shirt and light slacks with glasses and a facemask, side-view of John Kelly, a balding white man in a power wheelchair with a "Not Dead Yet" T-shirt and a sign. Ellen's sign reads: "Secular Progressive against Assisted Suicide." John's sign says, "it's all about disability and unmet needs: lack of access to home care / healthcare inequities/structural racism / societal ableism. " — Second Thoughts Massachusetts Protesters

Finn Gardiner, a black man with beard, glasses, and a black hat seated holding up a sign reading "we don't need to die to have dignity." — Protester sign reads “we don’t need to die to have dignity.”

L-R, rear, Jules Good holding sign "No health care equity/No real choice/No assisted suicide.", Don Summerfield, a white man in a broad white hat (partially obscured by speaker at podium in foreground) holding obscured sign, and Jess with sign "protect disabled lives!" Foreground: woman speaking at podium, which has sign reading "alleviate suffering/patient choice / strong safeguards" — Disabled protesters hold signs behind pro-assisted suicide speaker

Photo Descriptions:

Seated Signs: left to right, seated: Pam Daly, a white woman with shoulder length hair in a manual wheelchair Ellen Leigh, a white woman in a power wheelchair with shoulder length hair, a mask and eyeglasses, Finn Gardiner, a black man with beard, glasses and a black hat, John Robinson (standing behind), a white man in a green shirt and light slacks with glasses and a facemask, side-view of John Kelly, a balding white man in a power wheelchair with a “Not Dead Yet” T-shirt and a sign. Ellen’s sign reads: “Secular Progressive against Assisted Suicide.” John’s sign says, “it’s all about disability and unmet needs: lack of access to home care / healthcare inequities/structural racism / societal ableism.”

Finn Gardiner, a black man with beard, glasses, and a black hat seated holding up a sign reading “we don’t need to die to have dignity.”

L-R, rear, Jules Good holding sign “No health care equity/No real choice/No assisted suicide.”, Don Summerfield, a white man in a broad white hat (partially obscured by speaker at podium in foreground) holding obscured sign, and Jess with sign “protect disabled lives!” Foreground: woman speaking at podium, which has sign reading “alleviate suffering/patient choice / strong safeguards”