Law enforcement officers stand guard behind a fence surrounding The Supreme Court Building in Washington, D.C., May 14.
Photo:
LEAH MILLIS/REUTERS
As the nine Justices prepare to issue their final opinions of the current term, barricades are going up around the Supreme Court building. It’s a sad but necessary security measure because violence can’t be ruled out in response to the rulings.
The threat is explicit on abortion, as the arrest of an armed man outside Justice
Brett Kavanaugh’s
home attests. Demonstrators continue to protest outside the homes of some Justices, and now comes a vow from the shadowy group that calls itself Jane’s Revenge to commit what sounds like what Democrats would call insurrection if it were aimed at another part of government.
A friend last week sent a photo of a flyer popping up around Washington. “DC CALL TO ACTION NIGHT OF RAGE,” it declares. “THE NIGHT SCOTUS OVERTURNS ROE V. WADE HIT THE STREETS YOU SAID YOU’D RIOT.”
It continues: “‘TO OUR OPPRESSORS: IF ABORTIONS AREN’T SAFE, YOU’RE NOT EITHER.’ JANE’S REVENGE.”
That’s an incitement to more than peaceful protest against the Court. The threat of violence has to be taken seriously because Jane’s Revenge has already taken credit for acts of destruction against pregnancy-crisis centers around the country. Our
Nicole Ault
nearby reports on this ominous trend against pro-life groups that counsel pregnant women considering abortion.
Media reports say the Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating the attacks, and we hope so. Attorney General
Merrick Garland
made a show of establishing a domestic terror unit at the Justice Department, and equal justice means it can’t be aimed merely at right-wing groups.
The Jane’s Revenge threats have received little attention in the rest of the press, but we hope the Washington, D.C., and Capitol police are much better prepared than they were for the riots of 2020 and 2021. The Justices and the Court as a democratic institution have to be protected.
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Appeared in the June 21, 2022, print edition.
