Activists on both sides of the debate gathered in rejoicing or devastation.
“Elders, stop telling me what to do with my body,” read a sign from a protester in Washington, DC.
“People’s bodies are more regulated than guns,” read another protester in Atlanta.
In front of the Supreme Court, an excited Valentina Aaron raised a sign with a picture of a fruit. “Forceps from my body,” read the sign.
“It’s incredibly exciting,” Aaron said of the historic decision. “If I were a baby in the womb, I would want someone to stand up for me.”
But abortion advocate Joseph Little was holding a sign nearby that read, “Forced birth is slavery.”
“Making people give birth is slavery,” Little told CNN. “When you tell people that they no longer have a voice in their personal affairs, it is slavery. This is oppression. And the Bible makes it clear that we need to correct the oppression.
Demonstrations for and against the decision were largely peaceful, but several arrests were reported.
In Los Angeles, police intervened on Saturday when protesters tried to cross the US 101 highway. Officials pushed protesters and hit at least one person with bats, shows a video from the scene.
Full House actress Jody Sweetin was pushed to the ground by an officer, another video from the incident shows. Sweetin got up and continued to protest, chanting “No justice, no peace,” according to photojournalist and witness Michael Ade. Los Angeles police are aware of the video and “the force used will be assessed against LAPD policy and procedure,” the agency said in a statement.
At least 20 people have been detained on charges in New York, police said.
In Greenville, South Carolina, at least six people were arrested at a rally on Saturday, officials said. The rally was attended by people who protested and supported the decision of the Supreme Court.
In Washington, D.C., two people were arrested Saturday after being charged with “throwing paint on a fence by the U.S. Supreme Court,” U.S. Capitol police tweeted.
In Phoenix, about 1,200 people attended a rally on abortion rights on Saturday, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said. Four people were arrested late in the day after the fence around the House of Representatives and the Senate Plaza were torn down, the agency said.
In Lynchburg, Virginia, police are investigating vandalism at a pregnancy center. The words, “If the abortion isn’t safe, you’re not safe,” were spray-painted near the entrance to the Blue Ridge Pregnancy Center, police said. Security camera footage showed “four masked perpetrators,” police said in a statement.
The facility did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment. On Friday, the center shared its support for the Supreme Court’s decision on Facebook, writing: “Rejoicing with an overflowing heart of gratitude for the life-affirming decisions that were made today.”
States ban abortions while others move to protect access
The Supreme Court ruling allowed states to immediately begin setting their own abortion policies, leaving people across the country with varying levels of access.
Some states already have explicit bans on abortion, with various exceptions or none at all. These include Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah and Wisconsin.
States with abortion bans that are expected to take effect in the coming days and weeks include Wyoming, Mississippi, Tennessee and Idaho.
In Arizona, abortion providers began canceling appointments immediately after Friday’s ruling. The Republican Senate has issued a memorandum urging the state to immediately enact a law before Rowe that bans most abortions unless the procedure is necessary to save the mother’s life.
Meanwhile, some Democratic governors are trying to protect access to abortion.
In Wisconsin, Gov. Tony Evers said he would fight “any power we have” after his Republican-controlled state legislature refused to repeal the 1849 abortion ban, which came into force after the ruling. of the Supreme Court.
In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law Friday protecting residents outside of California seeking reproductive health care in the state. It also protects anyone who performs, assists or receives an abortion in the state from any potential civil action originating outside the country.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Waltz issued an executive order Saturday providing similar protection. “Our administration is doing everything possible to protect the right of people to make their own health care decisions,” Waltz said in a statement.
In Washington, Gov. Jay Insley has promised to create a “refugee state” for reproductive choice for people across the country through an upcoming executive order. The order will order state police not to comply with extradition efforts from other states that want to punish those who travel to Washington to have an abortion. Inslee did not specify when the enforcement order will be issued and when it will take effect.
The court battles began after Rowe
Shortly after Utah banned most abortions, Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit alleging that the new law violates civil liberties guaranteed by the state’s constitution – including the right to determine family composition and equal protection.
In the Planned Parenthood case, it said the law would have different effects on women than men and violated the right to bodily integrity, forced slavery, and the right to privacy.
Among the defendants in the lawsuit are the names of the governor and the chief prosecutor.
Abortion in Utah is now a second-degree crime in almost all cases, according to the case. Utah law allows abortion if there is a danger to the mother’s health, health conditions that are diagnosed in the fetus, or when the mother’s pregnancy is the result of rape or incest.
“When the law went into effect, the PPAU (Plaintiff’s Association in Utah) and its staff were forced to immediately stop performing abortions in Utah beyond the few permitted by law,” the lawsuit said. “If relief is granted in this case, the PPAU health centers will resume the provision of abortions that will not meet the requirements for any of the exceptions to the law.”
Gov. Spencer Cox’s office did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment on Saturday. Attorney General Sean Reyes’ office told CNN it had no comment on the case.
Donnie O’Sullivan, Aya Elamrusi, Jalen Beckford, Keith Allen, Gregory Krieg, Sonnet Swire, Hannah Sarrison, Sharif Paget, Claudia Dominguez, Sarah Smart, Kate Connery and Andy Rose contributed to this report.
Add Comment