Following the leak of an opinion showing that the Supreme Court is ready to overturn Roe v. Wade and let states ban abortion, neighbors of Justice Brett Kavanaugh organized pro-choice protests and the civility police were on high alert, clutching their pearls about the privacy of unelected judges who serve for life and are about to rip privacy rights away from millions of Americans.
Outgoing White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that “Judges perform an incredibly important function in our society, and they must be able to do their jobs without concern for their personal safety.” Who’s going to tell her about the decades-long campaign to harass, assault, and kill abortion clinic workers and destroy their clinics?
Yesterday, the Washington Post editorial board wrote that protests outside the homes of Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts “are part of a disturbing trend in which groups descend on the homes of people they disagree with and attempt to influence their public conduct by making their private lives—and, often, those of their families and neighbors—miserable.”
Let’s check in on the neighbors of Justice Samuel Alito, shall we? Also yesterday, people decided to voice their dissent near Alito’s house. He’s the man who wrote the leaked draft and, we’ll remind you, cited an English legal scholar who supported marital rape.
Independent reporter Talia Jane shared that about 100 protestors marched to Alito’s house in suburban Alexandria, Virginia, on Monday and that Alito’s neighbors seemed pretty fine with it. The organizers, Shut Down DC, tweeted that lots of neighbors gave them a thumbs up, and another protestor said that about a dozen neighbors joined the march. (The organizers were also well-prepared, with a pre-vetted attendee list, medics, safety marshals, and de-escalators, and a designated police liaison, Jane said.)
Jane tweeted that not only did some of Alito’s neighbors invite her to a firepit hang after the protest, they gave her red wine and cheese, plus what looks like some cured meats. Charcuterie!! They later served her a slice of key lime pie.
Can’t wait to hear what the civility police has to say about these polite neighbors and their bougie snacks!