Protesters in support of Roe v. Wade gather outside the Supreme Court: 'I'm tired of them chipping away at our rights'

Hannah Getahun
Updated ·2 min read
Pro-choice and anti-abortion activist rally outside of the U.S. Supreme Court on May 02, 2022 in Washington, DC. In an initial draft majority opinion obtained by Politico, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito allegedly wrote that the cases Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern v. Casey should be overruled, which would end federal protection of abortion rights across the country.

  • A leaked Supreme Court opinion suggested that Roe v. Wade may be overturned, Politico reported.

  • Hundreds of protesters gathered at the steps of the Supreme Court after the news broke.

  • One protester said they were "tired of them chipping away at our rights, particularly as women."

Hundreds of protesters gathered at the United States Supreme Court Building in Washington, DC, late Monday night after reports suggested Roe v. Wade could potentially be overturned.

A leaked draft opinion, obtained by Politico, suggested that Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that allowed the constitutional right to abortion in 1973, would be overturned by conservative justices.

"I got down here early, right, cause I got home from a long day kicked off shoes my shoes, opened Twitter, saw that Roe v. Wade was trending to be overturned, put my shoes back on, and came right back from east of the river," Rev. Wendy Hamilton, a Democratic congressional candidate from DC, told Insider.

Hamilton described a scene of hundreds of protesters, chanting with signs in hand, "who are feeling the same outrage." She also counted seven officers standing in her line of sight behind a barricade erected on Monday night, as well as a much smaller group of anti-abortion counterprotesters.

She said that the issue was particularly salient because of Black maternal health issues in the city.

"I'm tired," Hamilton said. "I'm tired of them chipping away at our rights, particularly as women. They're chipping away at voting rights. They're trying to overturn our democracy almost by any means necessary."

Ryan Jones, a lawyer running for DC attorney general was also at the protests and told Insider he had to "see what the reaction was firsthand."

"This is a mind-blowing decision that I couldn't imagine being overturned in my life," Jones said

A representative for the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider