State House rally held against two anti-abortion bills proposed in SC

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - People rallied outside the South Carolina State House on Thursday morning, voicing their opposition to two abortion bills under the General Assembly’s consideration.

One of those bills, S.988, would ban all abortions in South Carolina, a “trigger bill” that would go into effect if the U.S. Supreme Court wholly or partially overturns Roe v. Wade. Under that legislation, doctors who perform abortions would be charged with murder.

The second bill, S.907, would require patients receiving chemical or drug-induced abortions be provided with information about a controversial “abortion reversal” procedure. OB-GYNs have previously testified to lawmakers that these procedures are unproven in clinical trials and could put patients’ lives at risk.

Around 100 people were in attendance at the “People’s Rally for Abortion Justice,” organized by the Women’s Rights and Empowerment Network (WREN) and Planned Parenthood, and speakers included Sen. Mia McLeod, D – Richland, and Sen. Margie Bright Matthews, D – Colleton.

“Why is government intervention OK when it comes to abortions, but not when it comes to guns or vaccinations or statewide mask mandates?” McLeod said.

The two bills were on a crowded agenda for a meeting of the Senate Medical Affairs Committee later Thursday morning.

But lawmakers did not discuss or take action on them and have not said when the bills could potentially be taken up.

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