On May 2, 2022, a series of protests erupted in the United States following the leak of aU.S. Supreme Court document, revealing the possible overturn ofRoe v. Wade,[1] a law protecting the right toabortion in the United States. Soon after, aWomen's March took place on May 3, 2022, and then again on May 14, 2022,[2] as part of the2022 abortion rights protests in the United States. These protests have demanded an immediate protection toRoe v. Wade, an end todomestic violence andviolence against women, and for an end ofsexism in the United States. Counter protests have also taken place but on a much smaller scale.
For years, the topic of abortion had been widely debated, and following thepresidency of Donald Trump it became more widely known, with tensions rising between supporters and opponents of abortion rights. This resulted in large scale protests and counter protests, most notablyThe 2017 Women's March, where more than 5 million protesters took the streets across the country; this was followed by similar protests annually.
On May 2, 2022, following the leak of a possible overturn ofRoe v. Wade, protests erupted inWashington, D.C. The following day, a national day of action was announced by Women's March. Thousands took to the streets across the country, most notably inChicago,Los Angeles,New York City, and Washington, D.C.
On May 14, 2022, hundreds of thousands took to the streets across the United States and internationally. Both protests on May 3 and May 14 are part of the2022 abortion rights protests in the United States, and were the beginning of a "Summer of Rage" according to Women's March onFacebook.
On May 3, 2022, a national day of action was held across theUnited States at 5 PM local time.[3] Over 50,000 protesters took to the streets across the country, most notably inBoston.Chicago.Los Angeles,New York City, andWashington, D.C. Protests remained largely peaceful; however, clashes with police broke out in some cities.[4]
In Los Angeles, over 2,000 began protesting outsideLos Angeles City Hall. Iater in the day, a clash broke out with police resulting in several arrests.[5] In Boston, 1,000 gathered outside theMassachusetts State House, up to 200 college students marched toWorcester's city hall, hundreds marched inNorthampton, a dozen gathered outside the town hall inAyer, and protests also occurredSpringfield,Amherst, andHyannis.[6]
In Maine, up to 300 marched through downtownPortland, and about 50 gathered at an intersection inBangor.[7] In New York City, almost 5,000 protesters rallied at Foley Square inManhattan.[8] In Washington, D.C., up to 7,000 people gather outside theSupreme Court of the United States for the second day in a row.