The Argentine Senate voted down the Law of Voluntary Pregnancy Interruption (IVE), which would have legalized abortion, early on Thursday by thirty-eight votes to thirty-one. The Catholic Church and the bigoted right celebrated, but theirs is a Pyrrhic victory.

During the seventeen hours that the Senate debate dragged on, hundreds of thousands overflowed the streets around Congress, defying cold wind and incessant rain to demonstrate their support for the bill. The crowds showed that despite this momentary defeat, the country has been permanently changed. There is no going back from the “green tide,” named for the green handkerchiefs that decorate the wrists, necks, and backpacks of pro-choice demonstrators.

Argentina’s undemocratic Senate may delay the legalization of abortion for another year. But the overwhelming social majority that supports legalization has been exposed, with some polls showing up to an 80 percent approval of the IVE law.