PHOENIX — Jordan Johnson, 29, was one of several patients who passed by a half-dozen anti-abortion activists Thursday while heading to Acacia Women’s Center. Just two days after the state Supreme Court ruled that the 1864 abortion ban was enforceable, activists were outside the clinic, shouting at women not to come in and running toward cars pulling into the parking lot.
“Walking past those guys was very infuriating and emotional,” Johnson told NBC News shortly before her abortion appointment. She responded to the activists with an expletive-laden plea for them to leave her alone. “If they’re going to yell things at me, I’m not going to hold back.”
Johnson was at the clinic to see Dr. Ronald Yunis, a longtime obstetrician and gynecologist. Outside his office, protesters stood on the sidewalk with large red signs displaying Yunis’ name and face, claiming that the doctor “kills 150 innocent babies here every month.”
On Tuesday, the state’s high court ruled in favor of an 1864 policy that banned abortion from the moment of conception, with an exception to save the woman’s life. It made abortion a crime punishable by two to five years in prison for anyone who obtained an abortion or helped a person obtain one. Tuesday’s ruling effectively reverses a lower court’s decision that found a recent 15-week ban superseded the law.
Even with pro-abortion rights protests taking place across the state, an effort to place a constitutional amendment to protect abortion rights on the November ballot in Arizona, and promises from elected officials to thwart the decision, patients who spoke with NBC News said they were disappointed in the state’s failure to protect the right to abortion and are making plans for an uncertain future.
“It’s absolutely heartbreaking to know that there are so many women who will self-harm or resort to other means because they can’t get a medication the way they should,” Johnson said. She added that she plans to have her tubes tied after this procedure, understanding that abortion may no longer be accessible to her in Arizona. “I’m here to have an abortion because I think [being pregnant] It threatens my life because it makes me sick and I can’t do anything.”
Amber Adams, 30, said Thursday was the second time she saw Yunis for an abortion. She recalled her first visit to the clinic, when she was confronted by anti-abortion activists.
“The first time I was really young,” Adams said. “I almost turned away because they made me feel so bad. An elderly lady was yelling at me, saying I’m a bad person. But I know I made the right choice that day.”
The state Supreme Court said Tuesday it would stay its ruling for 14 days so a lower court could consider “additional constitutional challenges.” Reproductive rights advocates can appeal the decision within two weeks. Meanwhile, a separate, ongoing process would allow providers to continue providing services through the 15th week of pregnancy, until the end of May.
Tuesday’s ruling is the latest setback for abortion rights since the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision. Wade, which guaranteed the constitutional right to abortion. With the future of reproductive rights in the state up in the air, Adams said she would not give up her right to have an abortion.
“I would go to a different state. There is a way around this, but they are making it difficult. If you can’t go here, go to California or Mexico, go somewhere,” Adams said. “But it’s dangerous,” because without access to medical abortion, “people will start doing it on their own.”
Activists have been stationed outside Yunis’ office for years. One of them told NBC News that they are trying to close the center and stop people from seeing Yunis. But the doctor said he wasn’t intimidated by it. Yunis told NBC News that he has faced opposition for years, but his ultimate goal is to continue helping and caring for his patients.
“What they are doing is terrorizing our patients. Not everyone will agree with you all the time. But for me, these people don’t affect what I do,” Yunis said on Thursday. He said he has seen firsthand the impacts of abortion bans, including women bleeding and going to the emergency room after trying to perform the procedure on themselves. “I don’t want to see any patient hurt, whether they’re mine or not.”
Adams said she has been seeing Yunis for several years and trusts him to treat her with all of her reproductive health needs. “I have friends who reached out to him, family members,” she said. “He also advocates birth control. He tries to make sure you are safe next time so that you are not someone who shows up here often.”
As for the law, Adams said abortion should be a patient’s private decision and condemned the ban. “People need to go about their business and let people do their own thing,” Adams said.
“They are using a law from 160 years ago, but times have changed,” she added. “The world has evolved.”
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
