Grasso, Roe and Trevor Crowe.

Trevor Crowe, the Greenwich Democrat seeking her party’s nomination for the 36th State Senate District for the second time, is using social media to cleave to the historic legacy of the late Ella Grasso, the first woman elected governor of a state in her own right. There was no one like Ella.

One needs to be careful about soldering abortion rights to Mrs. Grasso. She was an unwavering opponent of a woman’s right to choose abortion services. The Windsor Locks Democrat would find no place in today’s Democratic Party.

In 1977, Grasso, the daughter of Italian immigrants, immediately prohibited the state from financing elective abortions (broadly defined at the time) when the Supreme Court ruled Connecticut was not required to pay for them.

Her achievements earned Ella Grasso a unique place in the nation’s public life in life and after her death in 1981. She said, “I keep my campaign promises, but I never promised to wear stockings.” That was Ella mocking the expectations imposed on women who succeeded in politics. People also paid attention when she declared, “I’m opposed to abortion because I happen to believe that life deserves the protection of society.”

Published March 27, 2024.