Activists on both sides of the abortion debate have begun to rally in Mississippi, attempting to influence lawmakers on the issue. The anti-abortion rights group Students for Life held a national meeting on how to discuss the topic. During the virtual rally, organization President Kristan Hawkins spoke with students across the nation.
Hawkins says “We are hoping and we are praying that those five votes still remain, the decision probably has gone through multiple drafts by now and there are different justices who have weighed in on different points. So we don’t really know what the final decision may be.”
On the steps of the Mississippi Capitol building, {nat sound here of chanting}, abortion rights activists are calling on the court to uphold Roe v. Wade, and for national lawmakers to codify the right to an abortion. Masie Brown is a student at Jackson State and local lead at 601 for Period Equity. She says if Roe is overturned, it could disproportionately harm people of color and those living in poverty in the state.
“I think that we in Mississippi have already acting on limited access as is, and so if that is completely stripped, I mean we were already living in a sort of post-Roe world," says Brown.
Also attending the rally is Jade Denson of Starkville, a student who drove two hours to protest the court’s draft opinion. She says abortion access is essential for those who may not be able to care for a child.
“And I think that Mississippi can address the immense amount of poverty that we see, and the immense amount of evictions that we see," says Denson. "Because we’re pushing people out of their homes, but we’re not giving them anywhere else to stay, but we’re also forcing them to have kids.”
The court is expected to rule on the Dobbs case in June or July, and if Roe is overturned, a trigger law in Mississippi will automatically ban almost all abortions.
