This past Wednesday (July 6th) U.S Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh snuck through the backdoor of Morton’s steak house due to citizens gathering there to protest his vote against women's right to abortion. The sudden protest had been quickly organized by the D.C group “Shutdown D.C". One of the group's members had shared Kavanaugh’s location on Twitter. The post provided the location of the restaurant he was eating at through private messages to those who requested.
The protesters then arrived at the front of the eatery, calling on its manager to “kick Kavanaugh out”, standing in peaceful protest at the front of the Morton’s establishment.
An hour after the initial post, and possibly because of the protest, another post was made to Twitter saying that Kavanaugh had “snuck out the back with security detail.”
This protest is a direct response to the decision made by the Supreme Court in June which overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision of 1973 that allowed women the constitutional right to safe abortions in the United States. Kavanaugh's vote to overturn Roe v. Wade not only made it illegal to get an abortion in most states but also put the healthcare of women in peril.
Reactions to this event have varied, the most noted one coming from Chasten Buttigieg, United States secretary of transportation Pete Buttigieg’s husband.
Chasten tweeted: "Sounds like he just wanted some privacy to make his own dining decisions," in response to the news.
The downtown D.C. restaurant which Kavanaugh dined, Morton’s The Steakhouse, commented on the event as well, complaining that patrons besides Kavanaugh were affected by the protest. They further shared in a statement made to Politico defending Kavanaugh, that “regardless of your ideas or views, should not trample the freedom at play to congregate and eat dinner”. The restaurant though - has yet to comment on the trampling of women’s rights to their bodies.
Since the chain's response has become public, they have received an onslaught of prank phone calls making fake reservations, as well as a handful of 1-star Google reviews protesting the restaurant's defense of Kavanaugh and his right to eat dinner. What a hill to die on.
Kavanaugh himself has yet to comment on the event.