Supporters of reproductive rights will rally at a federal courthouse in Amarillo on Saturday as part of a national day of action sparked by a federal judge鈥檚 ruling that halted access to a medication used in abortions.
Earlier this month, federal Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo ruled the U.S. Food and Drug Administration鈥檚 approval of mifepristone should be halted and invalidated the FDA鈥檚 action.
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals part of Kacsmaryk鈥檚 decision after the U.S. Department of Justice intervened, keeping mifepristone available for use up to seven weeks into pregnancy. The drug the medication鈥檚 availability via mail.
The Biden administration has since asked the U.S. Supreme Court to immediately take up the case and late Friday the high court placed a temporary hold on Kacsmaryk鈥檚 ruling until Wednesday night, NPR . Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito ordered both sides to file any responses by Tuesday.
鈥淭he Justice Department strongly disagrees with the Fifth Circuit鈥檚 decision in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA to deny in part our request for a stay pending appeal,鈥� U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. 鈥淲e will be seeking emergency relief from the Supreme Court to defend the FDA鈥檚 scientific judgment and protect Americans鈥� access to safe and effective reproductive care.鈥�
The rallies Saturday will be a show of protest against the 鈥渕anipulation of the U.S. justice system鈥� and the current 鈥渁nti-woman political agenda,鈥� according to Women鈥檚 March, which is coordinating the protests.
鈥淲e are outraged by the 5th Circuit's decision to severely restrict access to mifepristone, a safe and FDA-approved medication that has been available for over two decades,鈥� said Rachel O'Leary Carmona, the executive director at Women鈥檚 March. 鈥淭he courts have been stacked with radical politicians cloaked in robes and used forum-shopping to find a fast-track to a Supreme Court completely captured by their agenda. This isn鈥檛 just a battle about abortion or about Roe. This is about our rights - this is about our families, and our futures.鈥�
There is also a rally planned in Dallas at downtown鈥檚 Belo Garden Park, according to the .
The Texas events will coincide with a rally Saturday outside the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C.