The historic 5-4 vote brings people out and into the streets all over the country — both in celebration and in anger
Hardly an inch of space was left at Washington Square Park on Friday evening as crowds gathered to protest both the 5-4 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and the 6-3 vote that upheld Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, a Mississippi law banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. After decades of federal protections for abortions, many states, specifically GOP-led, will be ending such protections. This comes after the leak of Justice Alito’s draft abortion opinion by Politico in early May.
Following the protest at Washington Square Park, thousands then marched in the streets of Manhattan for blocks. Megaphones, posters, and voices flooded the streets as people of all genders and generations came together. There was anger. There was fear. There was passion — all throughout every chant as they condemned the SCOTUS votes.
After the decisions were announced,
President Biden said that this ruling is “literally taking America back 150 years.”
150 years ago, the right and freedom to access a safe abortion began to be
politicized and eventually criminalized, as many states began restricting abortion and abortion drugs. 150 years ago, women did not have the
right to vote. They were expected to adhere to the traditional route of a caretaker, both as a wife and mother. Many women challenged these expectations and restrictions and began a long fight for political, economic, and social equality.
With Friday’s votes, this marks a highly-controversial removal of a constitutional right among women and individuals who can become pregnant. Many individuals residing in the states favoring the SCOTUS decision are now left with fear and uncertainty as to what they will do if they need to make a private, personal, and often life-altering choice for themselves, especially since the freedom of choice for them is being stripped away.