Protesters on the March for Life on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR
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Eman Mohammed for NPR
Protesters on the March for Life on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Insisting that the struggle in opposition to abortion is not over, even after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade final June, hundreds of anti-abortion rights protesters gathered for the annual March for Life rally on Friday.
Following the reversal of Roe, organizers modified the trail of their symbolic march route. Instead of creating their approach to the Supreme Court, Friday the rally ends between the Supreme Court and the U.S. Capitol – sending a sign that there are nonetheless anti-abortion rights battles to be fought in Congress and within the courts.
“Boy, did we get an enormous victory just some months in the past when Roe was overturned, however as you all know, that is solely the tip of the primary section of this battle,” stated Rep. Steve Scalise, the U.S. House Majority chief, to a screaming crowd Friday. The Republican from Louisiana has stated abortion will likely be an essential focus for House Republicans this yr.
Protesters on the March for all times on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR
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Eman Mohammed for NPR
Protesters on the March for all times on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR
“The March for Life will proceed to march till the human rights of abortion isn’t any extra,” stated Jeanne Mancini, the March’s president, noting that pregnant individuals can nonetheless hunt down abortions in states the place the process is authorized.
A former chemistry instructor from Ohio on the march, Beth Eddy, stated she was capable of come for the primary time now that she’s retired.
“I’m tremendous excited that we lastly have Supreme Court justices who see that life begins at conception,” she stated. “But I’m additionally feeling like that is just the start.”
Protesters on the March for Life on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR
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Eman Mohammed for NPR
Protesters on the March for Life on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR
Eddy stated she would assist extra public funding for companies akin to healthcare for brand spanking new moms and kids. “People have to have assist to get by this as a result of the girl’s simply as essential because the child.” She additionally talked about that she helps exceptions for abortion in instances of medical emergencies, together with in conditions just like the high-profile case final yr the place a 10-year-old rape sufferer was pressured to journey to Indiana after Ohio’s near-total abortion ban took impact.
Public opinion nonetheless helps abortion
June’s Supreme Court choice did little to sway the American public on the subject of abortion. According to an upcoming NPR/IPSOS ballot, 60% of Americans say abortion ought to be authorized in all (26%) or most (34%) instances.
According to the identical ballot, many Americans see Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization as a politically motivated choice – 66% say they really feel that U.S. Supreme Court justices are guided extra by their politics than an neutral studying of the regulation.
Since June, a number of states – together with California, Michigan and Vermont – have bolstered abortion protections. And within the 2022 elections, voters rejected numerous measures that might have restricted abortion entry or criminalized docs.
Protesters on the March for Life on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR
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Eman Mohammed for NPR
Protesters on the March for Life on Jan. 20, 2023, in Washington D.C.
Eman Mohammed for NPR