US Supreme Court Set To Strike Down Abortion Rights: Here's Why People Are Protesting

A leaked document suggesting that the US Supreme Court is all set to overturn a decision that legalised abortion nationwide has led to a face-off between the supporters and opponents of the legislation.

Hundreds of pro-choice and anti-abortion activists gathered in front of the US Supreme Court on Monday night, hours after a stunning leak of a draft opinion that signals the institution may be set to strike down the right to abortion.

AFP

Unprecedented leak

According to the draft majority opinion obtained by news outlet Politico, the top US court is poised to overturn the historic 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that enshrined the right to abortion in the United States.

Abortion is one of the most divisive issues in US politics and has been for nearly a half century.

With the conservative Republicans in the majority in the Supreme Court, there was a growing fear that the 1973 order could be overturned.

AFP

What the draft said

"Roe was egregiously wrong from the start," conservative Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the draft opinion, which is dated Feb. 10, according to Politico.

Based on Alito's opinion, the court would find that the Roe v. Wade decision that allowed abortions performed before a fetus would be viable outside the womb - between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy - was wrongly decided because the US Constitution makes no specific mention of abortion rights.

"Abortion presents a profound moral question. The Constitution does not prohibit the citizens of each state from regulating or prohibiting abortion," Alito said, according to the leaked document.

AFP

According to Politico, other Republican-appointed justices ¨C Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett ¨C had voted with Alito in the conference held among the justices after hearing oral arguments in December, and that line-up remains unchanged as of this week.

AFP

Supporters vs opponents

Within hours of the news, anti-abortion activists chanting "hey, hey, ho, ho, Roe v. Wade has got to go" and abortion rights supporters shouting "abortion is healthcare" were facing off outside the court.

The two groups chanted and waved placards in the plaza in front of the steps to the Supreme Court, with barriers and a few uniformed police officers barring access to the colonnaded building.

AFP

Abby Korb, a 23-year-old graduate student and congressional aide, said she was "in literal shock" when the news broke and quickly headed to the Supreme Court with a friend.

"I'm a woman and my rights are being taken away every single day," she told AFP.

Like many others at the spontaneous demonstration, Korb, originally from Wisconsin, is now calling for legislation at the federal level to protect access to abortion.

"We need access to safe abortion because making it illegal isn't going to stop it, it's just going to make it more dangerous," she said.

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