Planned Parenthood Association of Utah will hold a rally on the south steps of the State Capitol in Salt Lake City Tuesday at 5 o’clock. Local protesters said a carpool meet-up at the park and ride lot across from Ecker Middle school will begin gathering at 4:15.
The protest is one of many occurring around the country in the wake of an unofficial Supreme Court opinion that was made public Monday.
That document’s contents, written by Justice Samuel Alito, indicated that a majority of justices had informally voted to overturn Roe v. Wade. Tuesday, Chief Justice John Roberts announced an investigation into the source of the leak – and organizers in major cities planned rallies in protest.
On Twitter, Utah Senator Mike Lee praised Alito’s opinion and called it a well-written and well-reasoned draft. Senator Mitt Romney also said that he supports overturning Roe v. Wade.
#SCOTUS pic.twitter.com/n10pN5eIsg
— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) May 3, 2022
— Senator Mitt Romney (@SenatorRomney) May 3, 2022
In 2020 Utah passed SB 174, a so-called trigger law, which would make it a second-degree felony to get an abortion. The law will immediately take effect if Roe v. Wade is overturned.
The 2020 law provides exceptions for rape and incest, life of the mother, or if two doctors say the fetus has a lethal defect. Last month the state republican party proposed changes to its platform that would eliminate all those exceptions.
The leaked Supreme Court opinion sparked widespread protest online and on the steps of the Supreme Court in Washington D.C. Monday in support of Roe v. Wade. Shortly after Politico reported on the document, federal officers put up barricades around the Supreme Court.
