“It’s like seeing the train coming toward you,” Kaluta, who received the news on her 24th birthday, told CNN. “And you finally get hit by it. And it still hurts more than you ever thought.”
Mia Khatcherian, who lives in New York, said she felt guilty knowing that abortion is legal in her home state, while those living in other states will be subjected to anti-abortion laws.
“I want women in other states to see the swell of support — that the sheer number (of demonstrators) sends a message,” said Khatcherian, 32, the daughter of a Filipina mother and Armenian father. “Knowing that women of color are going to bear the brunt of this decision” made sitting home, raging on social media, an impossibility, she added.
As news of the ruling emerged Friday morning, abortion advocates and opponents gathered outside the Supreme Court in Washington, DC.
One man — standing amid placards including the messages “Roe is dead” and “I am the post-Roe generation” — sprayed champagne in the air above others who were celebrating. There were several dozen abortion-rights opponents at the site during the afternoon, but it appeared they had filtered out of the crowd by evening.
As of Saturday, 13 states have trigger laws banning abortions in light of the ruling. Those states are Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Tennessee, Utah and Wyoming.
In some instances, the laws go into effect immediately, with some becoming effective after a certain time period or requiring certification by state officials.
Abortion providers have canceled dozens of appointments
Already, abortion providers in Arizona and Arkansas have already begun halting abortion services.
Family Planning Associates, Planned Parenthood Arizona and Tucson Choices in Arizona paused due to a lack of legal clarity, according to posts on their websites.
Dr. DeShawn Taylor, who operates Desert Star Family Planning in Phoenix, said her clinic canceled about 20 abortion appointments that were initially scheduled for Friday through next week.
“We’re committed to keeping our doors open if we can, to be able to provide abortion care, once it’s safe to do so. I believe we’ll be in some dark times for a while, hopefully for not too long, but I do believe the pendulum will swing back.”
On Friday, the Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus issued a memo stating the state must immediately enforce the pre-Roe law, which bans most abortions, unless the procedure is necessary to save the life of a mother.
In Arkansas, the Little Rock Planned Parenthood canceled between 60 and 100 appointments for people who had abortion procedures scheduled or were in the process of scheduling, Dr. Janet Cathey said told CNN.
“There were patients who said they were in their car and one their way and asked us, ‘It will be OK won’t it?’ and we had to tell them, ‘No, we have to follow the law,” Cathey told CNN. “Most patients were desperate or panicked,” she added.
Cathey added that the patients received contact information for the Planned Parenthood office in Overland Park, Kansas, adding that her office has “made arrangements for some to be transferred there.”
Little Rock is roughly 7 hours from Overland Park. But for those patients in south Arkansas, the travel time is closer to 10 hours, Cathey said.
“We were seeing people from Louisiana and Texas who came to see us too. Some called from Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. They’re going to be impacted as well,” she added.
Leaders respond quickly to protect abortion rights
State and local leaders have taken steps to protect as well as expand abortion rights, with some keeping in mind the influx of patients from states banning legal abortions.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law Friday that protects against any potential civil action originating outside the state for anyone performing, assisting or receiving an abortion in the state. It also protects non-California residents seeking reproductive health care in the state.
In Mississippi — where the abortion ban is slated to take effect 10 days after its attorney general certifies the Supreme Court decision — the owner of the last abortion clinic in the state insisted on staying open during that period to provide services.
Diane Derzis, who runs the Jackson Women’s Health Organization, said she’s not giving up and that her doors are open.
“I will tell you that any patient who contacts us, we’ll see them. We’ll make sure we see them during that 10 days,” Derzis said Friday during a news conference. “A woman should not have to leave the state to obtain medical care.”
Derzis said her team is planning to open a new clinic in Las Cruces, New Mexico, where they will continue to provide services.
CNN’s Gregory Krieg, Virginia Langmaid, Natasha Chen, Sara Smart, Claudia Dominguez, Cheri Mossburg, Kiely Westhoff, Alta Spells and Nick Valencia contributed to this report.
