Several House Democrats, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), were arrested by Capitol Police Tuesday at a protest on the House steps against the Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn the federal right to abortion.
Other members who were seen being detained by officers included Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), Jackie Speier (D-CA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and Alma Adams (D-NC). Capitol Police confirmed they had made 35 arrests, including 17 members of Congress, citing violations of laws against crowding, obstructing, or incommoding. The police force did not specify who was arrested and who was released after being escorted away.
Photo c/o Rep. Maloney’s office
Ocasio-Cortez was escorted away with her arms placed behind her back, acting as if she was handcuffed, although she was seen on camera raising her fist in defiance. After being escorted away, several members of Congress gathered together away from the protest, and few, if any, were likely detained.
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“There is no democracy if women do not have control over their own bodies and decisions about their own health, including reproductive care,” Maloney said after being arrested. “I have the privilege of representing a state where reproductive rights are respected and protected — the least I can do is put my body on the line for the 33 million women at risk of losing their rights. The Republican Party and the right-wing extremists behind this decision are not pro-life, but pro-controlling the bodies of women, girls, and any person who can become pregnant.”
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Attendees of the demonstration protested the overturning of Roe and shouted “Impeach Clarence Thomas” and “What about term limits?”
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Abortion rights proponents gathered at the Capitol to express their anger over the court’s ruling in the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. In that case, the right to abortion established in the 1973 case Roe v. Wade was overturned, returning the right to enact abortion policies to the states. About half of states are expected to allow abortion bans or other limits on the procedure to take effect.