They marched chanting "our bodies, our choice” and “we won’t go back.”
US politician Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other prominent Democratic members of Congress have been arrested outside the Supreme Court during a protest in support of abortion rights.
In response to the overturning of Roe v Wade last month, the group of politicians are reported by The Guardian to have gathered in front of the US Capitol before marching to the Supreme Court, chanting “our bodies, our choice” and “we won’t go back."
The news publication says that prominent progressives Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush joined Ocasio-Cortez in protesting.
They report that the group were arrested after an act of peaceful civil disobedience, as they sat in the middle of the street opposite the court building.
Police officers are said to have gathered round, arresting and handcuffing them after broadcasting a pre-recorded message announcing imminent arrest for blocking the street.
Footage shared on Twitter shows the moments in which the lawmakers were arrested.
Reps. Jackie Speier and Carolyn Maloney getting arrested pic.twitter.com/c1AP7ILHDu— Nancy Vu (@NancyVu99) July 19, 2022
Protest have swept America since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade almost a month ago. The overturning of the 1973 landmark law that gives women the right to abortion care, is expected to strip over half of US women of their right to choose.
Now that Roe v Wade has been overturned, it will be up to each state to determine the legality of abortion. It is expected that twenty-six states will ban or restrict abortion.
Ocasio-Cortez has previously spoken openly about her views on abortion bans. She's stated that abortion bans are about "owning women."
According to Business Insider, at a previous abortion-rights rally, the American politician and activist shared how grateful she was to have had the choice of an abortion after being raped when she was younger.
She shared the personal story with a crowd in New York last month, saying:
"I myself, when I was about 22 or 23 years old, was raped while I was living here in New York City. I was completely alone. I felt completely alone. In fact, I felt so alone that I had to take a pregnancy test in a public bathroom in midtown Manhattan.When I sat there waiting for what the result would be, all I could think was thank God I have, at least, a choice. Thank God I could, at least, have the freedom to choose my destiny."
In the end, the pregnancy test came back negative, but Ocasio-Cortez added: “It doesn't matter and that this is for all of us. This is not a women’s rights issue. This is an issue for all of us.”
