The American Civil Liberties Union filed a desperate lawsuit against seven East Texas towns that declared themselves Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn. The lawsuit attacks city ordinances that prevent the abortion industry from setting up shop in their jurisdictions. Interestingly, the lawsuit does not claim the ordinance violates plaintiffs’ so-called “right” to abortion but instead hinges on numerous other claims including the right of free speech and association.
Of the 11 Texas cities with active ordinances, the ACLU attacked Waskom, Naples, Joaquin, Tenaha, Rusk, Gary, and Wells. Sanctuary cities that are not involved include Colorado City, Westbrook, Gilmer, and the largest city to pass the ordinance to date: Big Spring.
We are confident the Pro-Life ordinances these seven East Texas cities have passed declaring themselves as Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn will hold up in court. These communities have shown great courage in standing up against the abortion industry.
Unsurprisingly, organizations that profit off the death of preborn children are throwing a hodgepodge of complaints at the court and seeing what they can get to stick. In passing the ordinance, cities acted within their constitutional rights to self-governance and within the scope of current U.S. Supreme Court abortion jurisprudence. The ordinance language is solid and carefully drafted in expectation of the abortion industry filing a lawsuit. This lawsuit is baseless, selectively targeting smaller cities that have passed the ordinance, and filed by abortion advocacy organizations that cover for the real culprit: abortion businesses, which are evidently unwilling to join the lawsuit themselves.
As always, we are not afraid for Pro-Life laws to be challenged in court; we watched the abortion industry try to stop these ordinances at city hall, but when citizens and local leaders stood strong, the pro-abortion forces realized their only hope is to intimidate cities with a scattershot lawsuit. Texas Right to Life looks forward to standing alongside these brave cities.