ABSTRACT
The author and five other women known as the Women's Liberation Zap Action Brigade were convicted of "using loud, abusive or threatening language to knowingly and willingly impede the orderly proceedings of Congress with intent to violate the law." We were charged as the result of an action at the Senate hearings on the Human Life Amendment last April 23, which would have outlawed abortion, IUDs, and certain forms of birth control pills. The authors’ defense attorney Lois Yankowski used the argument that they believed it was necessary for the public to understand that this bill would result in the deaths of women. Before sentencing, five of the authors addressed the court. They spoke about the necessity for women to control our own lives. They challenged the concept that the law was "fair and objective" and they said that they believed that they had acted appropriately.
