May 21, 2019

Powerful Scenes as Thousands Across the Country Protest Extreme Abortion Laws

#StopTheBans comes after 8 states passed draconian measures aimed at challenging Roe v. Wade.

As Republican-controlled state legislatures continue to pass legislation restricting abortion access—a steady movement that has prompted outrage and deep concerns this may trigger a conservative-leaning Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade—reproductive rights groups have organized a mass national protest on Tuesday to speak out against the new wave of draconian laws.

The call to action comes exactly one week after Alabama lawmakers passed a measure effectively banning abortions outright, even in cases of rape and incest. The ban, which was signed into law the next day, also makes it a felony punishable of up to 99 years in prison for doctors who perform the procedure. Seven other states have passed legislation targeting abortion rights this year alone.

The #StopTheBans demonstrations on Tuesday will kick off around noon local time, with at least 500 events scheduled at statehouses and courthouses around the country. More than 50 organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood, are behind the national day of protest. Several high-profile Democrats, including 2020 presidential candidates Sen. Amy Klobuchar and South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, were among the protesters attending the DC rally outside the Supreme Court.

We’ll be updating this post with powerful scenes from the various protests below: 

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Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

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