Texas activists hold their breath outside Supreme Court, bracing for decision on abortion

Tensions mounted as protesters gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court again Tuesday in anticipation of a ruling on abortion rights still expected by the end of the month. About 100 people representing both sides of the contentious issue stood outside the court as justices released opinions in five cases, but not the one out of Mississippi that could overturn Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 landmark abortion rights ruling. Abortion-rights supporters carried signs with messages such as “Roe Must Go” and “I’m a Woman not a Womb,” played music and yelled chants through megaphones. Abortion-rights foes on the scene, whose numbers fluctuated but remained slightly less than those of the abortion-rights supporters outside the court, held up signs that read “It’s a Child not a Choice” and “Voice for the Voiceless.” Their chants, including “Hell no, we don’t need Roe” and “Let their hearts beat,” echoed across the court’s plaza.

Justices have released several decisions throughout the summer but so far nothing on Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which experts have said would effectively overturn Roe, a case that originated in Dallas County. Paxton Smith, the Lake Highlands High School graduate who went viral last summer for her valedictorian speech criticizing the Texas “heartbeat bill” — Senate Bill 8, enacted Sept. 1 — was present for Tuesday’s protests. She said she’s been outside the Supreme Court for three days and anticipates staying until the end of the week. “I was afraid last year of simply not having a choice in whether I bear children or not,” Smith said to a small crowd of protesters. “And now I’m afraid that the choices are even slimmer, that, if I get an abortion, the other option is going to prison for up to life. I’m really scared of that.” In May, Politico reported on a leaked draft of the opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito that showed the court had voted in favor of Mississippi, therefore overturning Roe and other abortion provisions. The opinion would give states the power to create their own abortion laws. Texas already has the Senate Bill 8 ban on abortions after six weeks, but Gov. Greg Abbott has signed a “trigger law” that would make people having or performing an abortion subject to a felony if Roe is overturned. The law would go into effect 30 days after the Supreme Court’s ruling.