Dozens Hold Pro-Choice Rally In West Hollywood Tuesday

click to expand

WEST HOLLYWOOD (CBSLA/AP) – Abortion rights activists took part in "Stop the Ban" rallies throughout the Southland Tuesday in solidarity with hundreds of similar protests across the nation, including on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Dozens of abortion rights protesters hold a rally in West Hollywood, Calif. May 21, 2019. (CBS2)

The largest local protest took place in West Hollywood with a news conference and rally outside West Hollywood City Hall Tuesday morning.

West Hollywood claims to be the first city in the U.S. to declare itself pro-choice back in 1993.

Other Stop the Ban rallies took place in downtown L.A., Santa Monica, Van Nuys, Torrance, Huntington Beach and Irvine.

The Stop the Ban movement is in response to recent anti-abortion legislation in several conservative states, the most notable being Alabama.

Last week, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey approved the most stringent abortion law in the nation— making performing an abortion a felony in nearly all cases unless necessary for the mother's health.

The states are seeking to mount new legal challenges to Roe v. Wade , the 1973 landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide. Governors in Kentucky, Mississippi, Ohio and Georgia have approved bans on abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can happen as early as the sixth week of pregnancy.