Counter-protestors at the Men’s March in Boston, 2024
The trans daughter of a U.S. congresswoman was among the 17 counter-protestors arrested while trying to block an anti-abortion Men’s March in Boston last Saturday.
Riley Dowell, 24, is the daughter of Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA), the minority whip of the House of Representatives. Along with most of the other counter-protestors, Dowell – who was reportedly charged with unarmed assault – has been offered a deal to complete 40 hours of community service in exchange for the charges against her being dropped.
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“Every American has the right to protest and stand up for their beliefs, but they must do so responsibly and peacefully,” Rep. Clark toldThe Boston Herald in a statement following her daughter’s arrest.
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A police report called the counter-protestors “unruly” for refusing to move out of the way of the marchers and said they “began pushing back at officers, elevating their disorderly and unlawful activity to assaultive.”
Many of those involved in the counter-protest were dressed as clowns as a way to draw attention away from the Men’s March while also making fun of its message. The Clown March Boston website also describes its mission as “a joyful display of resistance.”
“The Men’s March is an out-of-state organization that thinks men don’t have enough of a say in women’s reproductive autonomy,” it continues, “so in 2022, 2023, and 2024, they organized a dreary, men-only funeral march to protest access to essential healthcare.”
“Each time, we’ve upstaged them with a parade of colorful costumes and silly circus music. We clown on them to demonstrate that they are not welcome here and we will not allow their narrative to go uncontested.”
Dowell was also arrested in 2023 for allegedly assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest, and vandalizing a public monument with anti-police messages.
“The extremist Republican Party is determined to take us back in time and make women second-class citizens,” she said in a statement at the time. “Their campaign to ban abortion is just the beginning of their assault on all our most sacred rights, and I refuse to stand on the sidelines as their rampage continues. I am furious and heartbroken, and I will proudly fight for our right to abortion. They can arrest me, but we won’t allow them to arrest freedom.”
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