Pro-choice New Yorkers are set to take to the streets Friday night in protest of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, eviscerating the constitutional right to an abortion and making the procedure illegal for millions of people across the country.
Demonstrators will descend on Washington Square Park at 6:30 p.m., to protest the decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, in a protest organized by the group NYC for Abortion Rights. Later, at 8 p.m., protesters will head to Union Square for a rally organized by Planned Parenthood.
The court’s decision was known for more than a month, after Politico published a leaked draft opinion in May. Following that leak, thousands of protesters descended on Foley Square in Manhattan and the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Abortions will remain legal in New York, and state leaders have said they intend to make New York a “beacon” for the rest of the country in terms of reproductive freedom. But with the court’s ruling — which was decided on a 6-3 margin with all conservative justices joining the majority — people from around the country are expected to start flocking to New York in search of a safe, legal abortion. Those without the resources to travel will likely seek riskier, dangerous options.
