In Photos: Abortion Rights Advocates Plan Rallies Across U.S. Following Texas Law

Topline

Thousands of pro-abortion rights demonstrators took to the streets in Washington, D.C., and other cities Saturday, pushing back against Texas’ near-total abortion ban as well as broader fears about the future of Roe v. Wade.

Key Facts

Key Background

Saturday’s rallies were spurred partly by a new Texas law that outlaws virtually all abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, and allows private individuals to file lawsuits and seek $10,000 in damages against anybody who “aids or abets” an abortion. The Supreme Court chose not to overturn the law last month, allowing some of the most sweeping restrictions on abortion in nearly 50 years to take effect in early September. Abortion rights advocates fear the high court’s 5-4 decision—which didn’t rule out overturning Texas’ law in the future—could precede a broader rollback of abortion access and erosion of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that struck down state-level abortion bans. In its current session, the Supreme Court will consider a law passed by Mississippi seeking to outlaw most abortions after 15 weeks, a potential challenge to Roe v. Wade.

Photos

Tangent

Several dozen counter-protesters appeared at a morning faith gathering organized by the March for Women’s Justice, the Washington Post reported.

Surprising Fact

Demonstrators also convened in London, marching from Trafalgar Square to the U.S. Embassy in the United Kingdom, an event U.K. advocacy group Abortion Rights framed as a show of solidarity with American protesters.