Democratic members of Congress arrested during pro-choice protest

Several prominent Democratic members of Congress were arrested on Wednesday during a protest in support of abortion rights in front of the supreme court, in the aftermath of the historic overturning of Roe v Wade last month.

The group, which included the prominent progressives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush, proceeded to stand along a crosswalk, or pedestrian crossing area, in front of the court, which is surrounded by a large black fence claimed to be unclimbable and erected to keep protesters away.

The group sat down in the middle of the street as an act of peaceful civil disobedience, as a group of police officers gathered around them, broadcasting a pre-recorded message announcing imminent arrest for blocking the street.

The officers then began to arrest the lawmakers, cuffing them and leading them to an area taped off away from the street.

A livestream of the protest was posted online by CPD Action, the protest-centered arm of the Center for Popular Democracy, a social justice organization, which coordinated the direct action.

CPD Action said 18 members of Congress were arrested. Seventeen were women. Andy Levin of Michigan was the sole congressman among them.

It has been less than a month since the supreme court overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v Wade ruling, which protected the right to an abortion under the constitution. Abortion is now banned or under threat of being banned in 60% of states.

Backlash against the supreme court, which is now dominated by six conservative justices, including three appointed by Donald Trump, intensified in May when a draft of the decision to overturn Roe was leaked. Soon after, the court installed the 7ft security fence.

Immediately after the release of the official decision, massive protests swept the US from New York to Los Angeles, including in large cities of Republican-led states such as Missouri and Texas.

Polling shows consistent majorities in favor of abortion being legal in at least some cases.