Law enforcement used flashbangs and tear gas to disperse the crowd as hundreds of people protesting for abortion rights amassed at the Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix on Friday night after the Supreme Court overturned overturned Roe v. Wade and ended the nearly 50-year nationwide right to an abortion.
Although local reports described demonstrations as being peaceful throughout the day, the situation got tense late when demonstrators began to bang on the windows and doors of the Senate building, trying to break the glass, according to 3TV/CBS 5. An unlawful assembly was declared by law enforcement and measures were taken to scatter the crowd.
BLACK-CLAD PROTESTERS DESCEND ON SUPREME COURT AS NIGHT FALLS AFTER ABORTION RULING
“Troopers deployed gas outside the Senate building after protesters attempted to break the glass. The crowd then moved to the Wesley Bolin Plaza where some monuments were vandalized. Gas was deployed again to disperse the crowd,” the Department of Public Safety said in a statement.
AND THEN… Senate immediately bails out because of ‘security situation.’ Area outside Senate filled with people protesting Roe decision. They appear to have entered building. pic.twitter.com/scZfijFz4G
— Brahm Resnik (@brahmresnik) June 25, 2022
Videos posted to social media showed scenes from those hectic moments. Among them was a video showing the moment that the Senate, which was in session, was cleared by President Karen Fann citing a “security situation.”
Some Republicans compared the chaos to the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The left is showing everyone what a REAL “Insurrection” looks like right now in Downtown Phoenix.
This is domestic terrorism. The Arizona national guard should have been deployed hours ago, @DougDucey
Arrest these animals immediately. They are out for blood. pic.twitter.com/RI8uNrioVz
— Kari Lake for AZ Governor (@KariLake) June 25, 2022
“The left is showing everyone what a REAL ‘Insurrection’ looks like right now in Downtown Phoenix,” Kari Lake, a GOP candidate for governor, said in a tweet. She criticized Gov. Doug Ducey for not quickly deploying the National Guard and called for arrests.
Demonstrators have rallied outside the Supreme Court and around the country since the 5-4 ruling in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that overturned Roe, returning the fight over abortion rights to the states. In Phoenix, pro-abortion demonstrators carried signs with messages such as “Abort SCOTUS” and chanted “My body, my choice.” There were also some counterprotesters, according to local reports.
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Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) signed a bill into law in March banning most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Attorney General Mark Brnovich said the new 15-week ban would go into effect in about 90 days.
