After Decades of Abusive Protests at Abortion Clinics, Kavanaugh has No Right to Complain

No one who has witnessed the hateful, abusive protests that patients, doctors, and nurses have endured for decades at abortion clinics should have the audacity to complain about protestors interrupting Brett Kavanaugh's dessert last week at Morton's Steakhouse in DC.

The Week: "Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh found himself embroiled in controversy yet again after a group of pro-choice protesters crashed his Wednesday night dinner at Washington, D.C.'s Morton's Steakhouse, where they demanded Kavanaugh be kicked out for voting to overturn Roe v. Wade. Though he stayed to finish his meal, the justice then reportedly left through the back without ordering dessert."

There might be more useful ways of guaranteeing women reproductive rights [organizing, voting], but there is certainly no Constitutional right to an uninterrupted dinner at an expensive steakhouse. On the other hand, it's clear that the peaceful protestors at Morton's are protected by the 1st Amendment.

Moreover, Justice Kavanaugh experienced just a tiny part of what millions of women, doctors, and nurses have experienced for decades at abortion clinics across America. Consider this report from the National Abortion Federation last month.

ABC News: "Violence against abortion providers significantly rose in 2021, according to a report from the National Abortion Federation published Friday."

"The report, which measures a variety of acts of violence and disruption, found the most significant increases were in stalking, blockades, hoax devices/suspicious packages, invasions and assault and battery, compared to 2020’s findings."

"Vandalism and assault and battery continue to be the most common offenses, but other acts have seen major jumps, with stalking increasing 600% from 2020, according to the report."

"Overall, the new data has found increased reported incidents of anti-abortion individuals “pushing, shoving, using pepper spray against, slapping, kicking, and physically fighting clinic escorts, staff and others outside of clinics.”

The Supreme Court has held that states can't ban peaceful protests at clinics, and demonstrators have used that Constitutional protection to harass and abuse women and staff for years.

So, yes, you can argue that protesting Kavanaugh's evening out is rude and probably doesn't accomplish very much, but it pales in comparison to clinic protests. And, it's certainly a small inconvenience compared to what millions of women will endure trying to obtain a legal, safe abortion in the future.

#news #law #supremecourt

By: Don Lam & Curated Content