Last Friday, thousands of anti-abortion activists marched in Washington DC in an annual demonstration "for life". The newly elected President Trump met them in a
that was played for the crowd, where he expressed his gratitude to all who "stand up for the small babies who cannot stand up for themselves".We will protect the historic progress we have made, said Trump, who also pardoned more like-minded individuals who were convicted of crimes.
One of them is a 75-year-old woman who, according to the President, was subjected to religious persecution when she was "convicted for praying outside a clinic". The woman was part of a group that traveled to Washington DC, stormed an abortion clinic, chained themselves to the furniture and doors, and illegally prevented others from receiving care. The group live-streamed their action on the internet.
The Goal to Repeal
Abortion rights have been abolished or restricted in 19 of the US states since the nationwide precedent "Roe vs Wade" was overturned by the country's conservative-weighted Supreme Court last year.
This has happened despite a large majority of Americans strongly supporting abortion rights. During the election campaign, Donald Trump refrained from taking a stance on a national abortion ban and instead said it was up to each state to decide.
Joe Biden's countermove was presidential orders to ensure access to abortion pills and the possibility for women to travel to less restrictive states for help. Those orders have now been repealed by Trump.
The re-elected President has also re-introduced a "global gag rule" that prohibits organizations abroad that receive American aid from assisting or promoting abortions.
Site and Info Disappeared
The same evening Trump was sworn in, the federal health department's special website for reproductive health was shut down. The site had provided information on what care citizens are entitled to and how it is provided.
During the past week, posts and accounts that inform about legal distribution of abortion pills have been censored on the dominant platforms Facebook and Instagram, reports The New York Times. When the newspaper contacted the parent company Meta, it was said to have been done by mistake, and the posts were re-published.
Abortion is deeply contested in the USA. The issue spans religion, women's rights, and poverty reduction.
Between 1973 and 2022, abortion rights were nationally protected through the Supreme Court's ruling "Roe vs Wade", which established that free abortion is part of the constitutionally protected right to privacy.
Donald Trump promised before his first presidency to appoint conservative judges to the country's Supreme Court to thereby puncture abortion rights. He got to appoint three, which gave the court a clearly conservative leaning. In 2022, it overturned "Roe vs Wade".
After that, twelve states have banned abortion in principle, and more have restricted it, while a number of others have strengthened it. Details differ, legal battles are ongoing in many places, and several states have held referendums with different results.
Opinion polls conducted over time show that about two out of three Americans support the right to abortion.
