DENVER — Outside the west side of the Colorado State Capitol, a loud and angry crowd on a normally quiet Tuesday afternoon protested a leaked draft opinion from the U.S. Supreme Courtthat shows a willingness to overturn Roe v. Wade.
"Let's make it very clear here. Abortion rights is a racial justice issue," Karla Gonzales Garcia, a community activist, told the crowd.
She was one of dozens expressing concern about the decision the high court is considering and the last implication they say it could have for a woman's access to abortion.
"I myself had an abortion in a country where abortion is illegal: Peru. You have no freaking idea the terror that I had [when I was] on the bed, not knowing if I [were to wake] up ... in the minutes after the abortion," Gonzales Garcia said. "The only thing that [an] unsafe and illegal abortion [does] is kill people."
Joining the protesters were state lawmakers like Julie Gonzales and Leslie Herod who recently helped pass the Reproductive Health Equity Act. It guarantees access to abortion in Colorado, despite what the justices decide federally, although it could be overturned if conservatives regain the majority in the legislature.
"Should the Supreme Court decision stand in the way that it has been issued as a draft, y'all, the work that we have done and the work that we collectively will continue to do will matter more than ever," Gonzales said.
Others who aren't as connected to the movement say they're taking this moment to teach a lesson to their young ones about fighting for what they believe is right.
"I have a six-month-old son, and when these things happen, I can't imagine myself in the future looking him in the face and saying I didn't stand up to also fight for women of color, for poor people," Brad Bogus said.
U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts says the draft opinion is not final as the investigation into who leaked it begins.
At least two other rallies were scheduled at the State Capitol on Tuesday, in addition to the first rally at noon.
