'Far-Right Extremist Agenda:' BK Leaders React To Roe V. Wade Ruling

BROOKLYN, NY — The Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade Friday, eliminating the constitutional right to abortion, was met with rallying cries and words of outrage across Brooklyn, as New Yorkers vowed to protect abortion rights for those in and out of the state while lawmakers in about half of the country prepared to all but ban the procedure.

The decision, which was released more than a month after a draft opinion leaked, was based on a 6-3 ruling on a Mississippi abortion ban case, in which the Court also struck down Roe in a 5-4 vote. Chief Justice John Roberts voted with the majority, but wrote a concurring opinion that said overturning the landmark statute went too far. The court's three liberal members dissented.

U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez, who represents Brooklyn, said the decisions doesn't reflect the opinions of most Americans and is the work of a "far-right extremist agenda that has been given a platform by the GOP on the highest court in our land."

"In a shocking and insulting sequence of rulings, this Supreme Court has essentially deemed guns as more worthy of constitutional protections than the majority of Americans," she said, alluding to the Court's decision earlier this week to strike down a state law limiting people from carrying concealed handguns.

Many advocates and progressives — like Velázquez — said they see both of these decisions as related to the Court's shortcomings and called on lawmakers to expand the Court and codify abortion protections before more rights are infringed upon. (In his concurring opinion on Roe, Justice Clarance Thomas argued the Court "should reconsider" rulings on contraception access, same-sex relationships and same-sex marriage.)

"We have codified abortion protections. Congress needs to do the same," said Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon. "But that's tomorrow, Today, we mourn, we march, and we make sure that those who are scared of what this means for them and their bodies know that we will keep fighting for them."

Citywide organizers quickly put together rally plans Friday night, immediately following a protest already planned over the Court's decision to strike down a state law placing limits on carrying concealed weapons.

New York, though, is certain to keep its abortion rights in place. The state codified the right to abortion in 2019, when it also repealed a ban on abortions after 24 weeks (efforts to add abortion rights to the state constitution have not yet succeeded, however.)

The biggest local impact of the Court's decision may be to turn New York into a "safe haven" for people seeking abortions — much as it was before Roe was decided in 1973, when thousands of women flocked here to get abortions.

Despite their anger, many leaders in Brooklyn celebrated this possibility.

"Our state, and our City, has always been a beacon of hope for people in need, and in the post-Roe world, we will continue to be," tweeted Park Slope's Council Member Shahana Hanif.

State Senator Andrew Gounardes echoed a similar sentiment. "I remain committed to fighting like hell to do whatever we can here as a state to protect patients who receive abortion care and medical professionals who provide it, no matter how far they have travelled to reach New York," he said.

Traveling for an abortion, though, is an increasingly costly endeavor hitting lower income people of color the hardest, Fortune reported, prompting calls from citywide leaders to support abortion funds.

"New York is a legal abortion state, but people will need help getting here," tweeted U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez along with a link to abortion funds. "Now is the time to organize.