Pro-abortion groups plan to target Catholic churches for protests scheduled for Mother's Day on 8 May, with some referring to the Roman Catholic faith of the US justices who reportedly supported the leaked draft opinion striking down the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that essentially legalises abortion nationwide.
The left-wing group Ruth Sent Us tweeted that “Whether you’re a ‘Catholic for Choice’, ex-Catholic, of other or no faith, recognise that six extremist Catholics set out to overturn Roe.”
The group also posted a video of its activists appearing to disrupt a church service amid a call to “Stand at or in a local Catholic Church Sun May 8”.
The organisation Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights, for its part, announced a "week of action" beginning on Mother's Day, with “Actions Outside of Churches”.
“This action is called for by a collective of spanish [sic] speaking women’s rights groups + activists across the country, including from Bride’s March, Dominican Women’s Development Center, Ni Una Menus, and Las 17”, the group’s schedule reads.
“Several cities will be hosting protests outside of prominent churches in their towns, these can look like a group of people holding signs wearing Handmaids Tale outfits, passing out flyers outside to church goers or doing a die-in,” according to the schedule.
White House Endorses 'Peaceful Protests' Over Roe Opinion
This comes as Washington declined to encourage pro-abortion activists to avoid protesting at justices' private residences, with White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying that President Joe Biden "shares" the "concern" and "horror" of those who "feel outraged" or "scared" over the leaked draft opinion.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that President Joe Biden's message to anyone feeling outraged is that their best course of option “is participating in a peaceful protest”.
She warned all those seeking to protest against “resorting to violence in any way, shape or form”, adding, “Ensure it's peaceful. Have your voice heard peacefully”.
When asked whether abortion protests outside justices' houses might be considered extreme, Psaki said that “Peaceful protest is not extreme” and that “we [the Biden administration] certainly encourage people to keep it peaceful and not resort to any level of violence”.
She spoke after the Ruth Sent Us group posted online the apparent home addresses of Justices Amy Coney Barrett, John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, also signalling readiness to send demonstrators to “the homes of the six extremist justices” in Virginia and Maryland.
The move followed Politico publishing a leak of an initial draft majority opinion penned by US Justice Samuel Alito revealing that the US Supreme Court voted 6-3 in favour of overruling the 1973 landmark Roe v. Wade decision that envisages that women have the right to get abortions as part of their right to privacy.