Thousands of New Yorkers joined tens of thousands around the country to protest abortion restrictions in Texas.
The recent ban in Texas would force women to travel hundreds of miles—to go out of the state to obtain an abortion. Roe vs Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision ruled that a pregnant woman was at liberty to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. Texas’ “heartbeat law” restricts all abortions when a fetal heartbeat is detected with no exceptions including rape or incest. This march takes place just days before the Supreme Court convenes —a Mississippi case enabling them to overturn rights established in the 1973 decision will be heard. If Roe vs. Wade is overturned, abortion access will no longer be protected and states will be free to ban or limit it.
Masks that demonstrators wore read: Bans Off our Bodies. The sentiment from speakers at the rally echoed the placards carried by marchers who filled 6th Ave. as making their way to Union Square: We’re not going back. My body my choice.
Photos by Tequila Minsky
