A proposed ordinance to forbid entering the city limits of Clarendon, a rural Panhandle town, in order to obtain an abortion in another state was turned down by the City Council. As increasingly conservative cities approve similar legislation, Clarendon becomes one of the first cities in Texas to reject an abortion travel restriction, voting 3-0 on Thursday.
On Thursday, advocates and opponents of the “Sanctuary City for the Unborn” idea spoke before the council. Clarendon, a community of slightly over 1,700 residents located roughly 60 miles southeast of Amarillo, heard arguments on the subject for the second time from its city leaders. In their ruling, the council referenced recent state legislation.
“Our business is making sure our city gets water, streets to drive on, trash is taken out and much more,” said Eulaine McIntosh, a Clarendon council member. “We’re not allowed to take action beyond state law, and this ordinance comes very close to overstepping state law.”
Located in the deeply red Donley County, where 87% of voters preferred Donald Trump over Joe Biden, is Clarendon.
Abortion sanctuary city ordinances were passed by anti-abortion campaigners, outlawing the procedure inside city lines, before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Following the enactment of one of the strictest abortion prohibitions in the nation by Texas, the same campaigners escalated the battle for access by focusing on women travelling over state lines to obtain abortions.
The proposed rule would have allowed for private lawsuits against anyone who provides financial or practical support to someone seeking an abortion, but it did not call for pregnant women to be punished for having the procedure performed outside of their state. This would be put into effect by private lawsuits brought by other citizens, establishing a system that would allow people to report their fellow citizens and be eligible to receive rewards.
Pregnant women are not to be penalized, according to the ordinance, but legal activist against abortion Jonathan Mitchell has filed lawsuits to remove women he believes went out of state to have abortions. Mitchell is collaborating with pro-life groups who are advocating for the travel ban at the local level.
Legal experts have stated that these so-called travel restrictions on abortion are more comparable to ceremonial declarations than legally enforceable laws due to their dubious enforcement practices and uncertain legal foundations.
Ordinances prohibiting travelling through their jurisdictions for abortion outside of Texas have been approved by several counties and cities in the state. This covers the counties of Mitchell, Goliad, Lubbock, Dawson, Cochran, and Jack as well as the cities of Athens, Abilene, Plainview, San Angelo, Odessa, Muenster, and Little River Academy.
Although they have given the proposal some thought, the cities of Chandler and Llano have not yet decided whether to accept or reject the travel prohibition. Following months of deliberation, the Amarillo City Council likewise decided not to approve the ordinance right away, but they may soon have to do so in light of a petition sponsored by citizens that was recently delivered to the city.
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