Celebrities Join Bans Off Our Bodies Rallies Across The Country
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Laura Dern, Milla Jovovich, and other celebrities joined reproductive rights activists at Bans Off Our Bodies rallies.
Content Warning: rape, assault
Yesterday, hundreds of thousands of Americans marched for reproductive justice. In light of the Supreme Court’s leaked draft opinion to repeal Roe v. Wade, There were over 380 planned marches across the country.
A day before the protests, Planned Parenthood took out an ad in New York Times sharing its Bans Off Our Bodies petition, which was signed by over 160 musicians, actors, and artists like Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, Billie Eish, Megan Thee Stallion, Halsey,Phoebe Bridgers, Miley Cyrus, and Hailey Bieber, to name a few.
On May 14, celebrities marched in solidarity with pro-choice demonstrators and reproductive justice activists.
In New York, Julia Louis-Dreyfus held up a sign quoting her Veep character that read, “‘If men got pregnant you could get an abortion at an ATM’ - Me”
In Los Angeles, Padma Lakshmi, Christy Turlington Burns, and Laura Dern marched with handmade signs. “Today we march for reproductive freedom and justice✊🏾 “ tweeted Lakshmi.
Abbott Elementary’s Lisa Ann Walter spoke at the Downtown LA rally, saying, “I can’t work in Texas anymore,” referencing the state’s vigilante anti-abortion law SB 8. “We won’t quit until women are guaranteed autonomy all over this country.”
Attorney Gloria Allred, who has represented women against Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, and other high profile sexual harassment and assault cases, shared her own story of not being able to get a legal abortion after being raped at gunpoint in the 1960s.
"I was left in a bathtub in a pool of my own blood, hemorrhaging," Allred shared during the L.A. rally. "A nurse said to me: I hope this teaches you a lesson. It did reach me a lesson, but not the one she wanted. Abortion must be safe, it must be legal, it must be affordable, it must be available."
“I want you to vote as though your lives depend on it, because they do,” she told the crowd.
Milla Jovovich took to the podium to defend reproductive rights.
“Now once that door is open, the Trump stacked Supreme Court will have the power to change the course of history by undoing every hard fought victory for human rights over the past 50 years,” said Jovovich.
'To make this procedure illegal, won't stop women getting them. It will stop women from getting safe abortions!” said the Ukrainian-born actress.
Connie Britton, Constance Wu, and Ricki Lake also spoke to the crowd.
Singer and actor Dove Cameron also joined the crowd of thousands of protestors. “You can’t ban abortions you can only ban safe abortions,” read Cameron’s sharpie-scrawled sign.
Comedian Kathy Griffin was also in the thick of the crowd. She shared a pan of the thousands of people — along with a police helicopter hovering above — during the rarlly. “LA turns out all over the city,” she captioned the video.
Cyndi Lauper also marched in L.A., carrying a sign that says “Girls just wanna have fun-damental rights,” referencing her iconic ‘80s bop. She shared snaps with Dern and others on Instagram with the hashtag #BansOff.
“I’m here at the march, with the ladies, chanting, ‘Hey hey, ho ho, abortion bans have got to go,” Lauper said before reminding viewers that “November 8 is coming and that’s when you vote out, and vote in people who represent us.”
Primary elections are also rapidly approaching for many states, including Lauper’s home state of California, and more conservative-leaning states like Kentucky, North Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas.
Voting in the primaries gets the progressive candidates who will keep reproductive rights legal for everyone on the November ballot. Check here to see when your state’s 2022 primary election is.
