'A Sanctuary City for the Unborn': Major Texas City Could Become 15th to Outlaw Abortion
Over the last year, 14 Texas cities have approved ordinances outlawing abortion within their city limits. Lubbock could become the latest and the largest city in "The Lone Star" state to name itself a "sanctuary city for the unborn" and outlaw abortion if the mayor and the city council approve it.
The Daily Wire reports that several state lawmakers and local activists have been leading an effort to get the 'Hub City' to adopt an ordinance banning abortion as Planned Parenthood plans to open a new clinic in the city.
"The fact that 'the outlawing of abortion within the city limits' is even being discussed as an option for the City of Lubbock shows just how far the Sanctuary City for the Unborn movement has come," Right to Life of East Texas Director Mark Dickson told The Daily Wire in an email. "What started in a city of 2,189 is now being entertained in a city of about 300,000."
READ 'We've Been Silent Too Long': Texas Towns Take a Stand, Become 'Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn'
Dickson is the founder of the Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn Initiative and the author of the proposed ordinance. State Sen. Charles Perry and state Reps. Dustin Burrows and John Frullo, all Republicans representing the Lubbock area, sent a letter to the city's GOP mayor, Dan Pope, and the city council last month urging them to adopt Dickson's ordinance.
"It has come to the attention of many in our area that Planned Parenthood, the nation's leading provider of abortion services, is planning to open a clinic in Lubbock between now and the end of the year. We respectfully request that the City of Lubbock take all necessary actions to prevent them from opening, since this organization profits off of ending the lives of unborn children," the letter says, according to LiveAction.
"The battlefield to protect the unborn has shifted from the state to the local arena in recent years. For that reason, passing an ordinance designating Lubbock as a Sanctuary City for the Unborn will help to continue the Texas belief that life begins at conception, while also protecting the safety of mothers," the letter continues.
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Planned Parenthood operated a clinic in Lubbock until a law forced the clinic to shut down seven years ago. The law has since been overturned and the nation's largest abortion provider recently revealed plans to reopen by the end of the year.
"Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas recently posted for staff positions in Lubbock and is planning to announce the opening of a new health center in that community later this year. In light of the history of harassment by extremists opposed to Planned Parenthood's mission, it is our ongoing policy to not comment on health center projects for security reasons until they are completed," Planned Parenthood said in a statement on its website.
Dickson's proposed Lubbock ordinance states, "It shall be unlawful for any person to procure or perform an abortion of any type and at any stage of pregnancy in the City of Lubbock, Texas," The Texan reported.
"The Supreme Court's pronouncements in Roe v. Wade and subsequent cases may limit the ability of State officials to impose penalties on those who violate the Texas abortion statutes, but they do not veto or erase the statutes themselves, which continue to exist as the law of Texas until they are repealed by the legislature that enacted them," it continues.
