Hundreds of activists chanted and marched outside the Supreme Court for several hours starting Tuesday morning, holding colorful signs and banners that read “Doctors are not doctrine” and “Abortion is medicine.” After mobilizing, the judges considered the availability of commonly used abortion pills. .
Supporters of abortion rights outnumbered those who opposed abortion, but the two factions occasionally clashed, such as at rallies over the safety of the pill mifepristone. (In fact, studies have shown it to be safe for terminating pregnancies.)
Some traveled across the country to demonstrate. Courtney Brown, a coffee shop owner who helped found an abortion rights group in Amarillo, Texas, where the scandal began, described her town as “ground zero” for the fight over abortion.
She added: “We are tired of having these rights taken away and we are ready to fight back.”
Patrolling the courthouse were several small, spherical robots called “robots'' that were remotely controlled and filled with abortion pills. Potential recipients use “Roe-bot” to complete a telemedicine consultation with a provider in states where the pills are legal, and then the machine dispenses the pills.
Three medical students from New York who accompanied the “Robot” emphasized the importance of the incident as future doctors and obstetricians and gynecologists who are at risk of facing restrictions on reproductive medicine.
Sarah McNealy, a student at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, said Supreme Court justices “didn't go to medical school.” She said, “The FDA is a world-class agency with great people who are passionate about their work, and we should stop letting them do it and politicize science.”
About 13 abortion rights activists were arrested for violating laws prohibiting crowding, obstruction and inconvenience on Capitol grounds, according to Capitol Police. The arrests were part of a civil disobedience plan aimed at highlighting the far-reaching implications of this incident, which could significantly reduce access to pills and undermine FDA's regulatory authority.” said Women's March Executive Director Rachel O'Leary Carmona, one of the 13 people detained.
He added that the arrests send a message to the Supreme Court: “Regardless of the outcome, we will make sure that people have access to abortion pills when they need them.”
While arguments were in progress, activists held dueling rallies on both sides of the courtroom steps. Anti-abortion activists decried the framing of abortion rights as a women's health issue.
One such activist, Melanie Salazar, who is 31 weeks pregnant, had a message scrawled across her bare belly: “I'm totally human.” Feeling her baby move, she said, further clarified her own opinions on abortion and raised her hopes for “further victories against the abortion industrial complex.” .
“My baby is fully human, just as I am fully human, and every child is fully human,” she said.
Celeste McCall, 79, a supporter of abortion rights, interjected: “I'm fully human too.”
McCall added that she felt the urge to sit down with Salazar because “Mr. Salazar apparently has gotten bad information that the drug is harmful.”
“When I was younger, I thought this problem was solved 50 years ago,” she said, gesturing toward the court before running off to join in the chants. “Maybe I haven't done enough damage?”