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A group of topless women ran onto the court at a WNBA game in Brooklyn on Tuesday night to protest the leaked Supreme Court draft decision that could overturn Roe vs. Wade.
The women stormed the floor during the New York Liberty’s game against the Minnesota Lynx on Tuesday night at Barclays Center in New York City.
They are seen in multiple videos taken by fans in attendance walking onto the court holding signs, with some only covered up by what appears to be green paint. Several also had red paint between their legs.
As the women ran onto the court, several banners and signs could be seen held up by abortion rights supporters.
One larger banner read: ‘Overturn Roe? Hell no!’ while another read ‘Abortion on demand & without apology.’
The protesters appeared to be with a group called Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights, which has staged recent protests at public events, including a Mets-Dodgers baseball game in Los Angeles over the weekend and a Joel Osteen service.
The organization tweeted out a statement with a photo of four of the women who protested after the game saying: ‘This was the audience we wanted. We aren’t protesting to change the hearts & minds of woman-hating fascists. No. We are calling on those who can stop the overturning of #RoeVWade: THE MILLIONS of ppl who support #abortionrights. YOU! No business as usual. Shut the country down!’
A group of semi-topless women ran onto the court at a WNBA game in Brooklyn on Tuesday night to protest the leaked Supreme Court draft decision that could potentially overturn Roe vs. Wade
The women stormed the floor during the New York Liberty’s game against the Minnesota Lynx on Tuesday night at Barclays Center in New York City
As the women ran onto the court, several banners and signs could be seen held up by abortion rights supporters
One larger banner read: ‘Overturn Roe? Hell no!’ while another read ‘Abortion on demand & without apology’
The organization tweeted out a statement with a photo of four of the women who protested after the game
The activist group also recently protested at a Mets-Dodgers game in Los Angeles and at a Joel Osteen megachurch service
Many of them marched around the lower bowl of the Barclays Center but did not enter the court.
The women who had gone onto the court were eventually taken away by security with one woman even being grabbed by her own hair by one of the guards.
Fans at the Barclays Center were largely supportive and applauded the protesters.
When contacted by DailyMail.com, a spokesman for the NYPD had no record of any arrests stemming from the game.
Sabrina Ionescu – the Liberty’s biggest star who famously went viral for speaking at Kobe Bryant’s funeral – had no idea what was happening until after the game.
The protesters appeared to be with a group called Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights, which has staged recent protests at public events, including a Mets-Dodgers baseball game in Los Angeles over the weekend and a Joel Osteen service
The women who had gone onto the court were eventually taken away by security with one woman even being grabbed by her own hair by one of the guards
Fans at the Barclays Center were largely supportive and applauded the protesters
Sabrina Ionescu (pictured center) – the Liberty’s biggest star who famously went viral for speaking at Kobe Bryant’s funeral – had no idea what was happening until after the game
‘I wasn’t sure what was going on. I personally thought it was the halftime show. It took me some time to process. I’ve only seen stuff like that on Twitter.’
Teammate Rebecca Allen addressed the distraction, saying that she ‘approved the message’ and was glad the team was able to refocus afterward.
The leaked SCOTUS draft was obtained by Politico in May. Written by Justice Samuel Alito, one of the six justices appointed by a Republican president who sit on the court, it repudiated both Roe v Wade and the 1992 Planned Parenthood vs Casey Decision.
If and when the draft is made final, the decision removes the federal right to abortion in America, leaving it up to elected officials in each state to decide whether or not women should have access to abortions.
Twenty-six states are likely to ban it if Roe v. Wade is formally overturned, essentially outlawing abortion in more than half of the country. Eighteen states already have restrictive abortion laws in place.
Republican appointed-Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett all voted to strike down Roe with Samuel Alito, Politico noted
The beginning of the original leaked draft opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito
The news sent shock waves throughout Washington D.C. with Democrats vowing to codify the legal right to an abortion into law and Republicans demanding an investigation into the leak, claiming it was done to try and influence the high court ahead of its formal ruling.
The WNBA, which has engaged in some of the highest profile political protest on Roe vs. Wade, released a statement two days after the draft opinion was leaked.
‘The WNBA believes all women have the right to autonomy over their bodies and fair and equal access to health care,’ the statement, which does not specifically mention Roe v. Wade or abortion, said.
The league adds that it plans to continue focusing on ‘civic engagement’ and voting rights throughout their 2022 season.
Players in the past were active in the Black Lives Matter movement during the 2020 season.
The Atlanta Dream, who were owned by former Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler, engaged in active campaigning for Loeffler’s opponent, Rev. Raphael Warnock, during the 2020 election, with Warnock’s campaign crediting the team with raising $236,000.
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