Abortion protester climbs San Francisco building
A man who says he is opposed to abortion was arrested Tuesday after climbing the 1,070-foot-tall Salesforce Tower in San Francisco. (May 3)
AP
Calling himself the “Pro-Life Spiderman,” a 22-year-old man scaled the 61-floor Salesforce Tower in San Francisco – the second-tallest building in California – to raise awareness for his cause as an abortion rights opponent.
The San Francisco Police Department said officers arrested Maison Deschamps, an anti-abortion activist and college student from Las Vegas, early Tuesday on charges of trespassing and resisting arrest after his climb up the side of the skyscraper. He said he scoped out the 1,070-foot climb by examining the building from Google Maps.
According to NBC Bay Area, witnesses told police early Tuesday that a man was scaling the building. By about 11 a.m., Deschamps had reached the top. Authorities on the roof promptly placed him in handcuffs before escorting him away. He was released later.
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In an interview with ABC7 News in San Francisco, Deschamps said he has been scaling buildings to bring awareness to his cause and hopes to raise $1 million to support anti-abortion charities. He stopped several times during the climb to post videos on social media.
“It was fun,” he said. “I’d do it again. … I wanted to post some videos so they would get out while I was in jail.
“I don’t have any regrets. We’re sending a message.”
This isn’t Deschamps’ first run-in with the law. Last year, Deschamps climbed Aria hotel in Las Vegas to protest COVID-19 restrictions. He was arrested, charges were dropped.
The San Francisco Fire Department released a statement condemning Deschamps’ actions, tweeting: “This person is placing firefighters lives and the publics safety at risk. AVOID THE AREA and join us in condemning this action.”
