(KXAN) — More and more cities and towns across Texas are declaring themselves as “sanctuary cities for the unborn.”
This type of ordinance declares that abortion is murder and prohibits abortion facilities from opening in city limits, but does not punish women, according to Texas Right to Life.
Four cities had such propositions on their ballots for the Nov. 8 election. Each of them passed.
- Abilene: 53% of voters were in favor, according to KXAN sister station KRBC
- Athens: 58% (1,579) of voters were in favor, according to KXAN sister station KETK
- Plainview: 69% of voters were in favor, according to Texas Right to Life
- San Angelo: 56% (13,180) of voters were in favor, according to KXAN sister station KLST
Nearly 50 cities are already “sanctuary cities for the unborn” according to Texas Right to Life, most are in north and east Texas.
Abortion is already illegal in Texas since a trigger law went into effect after the overturn of Roe v. Wade. These ordinances would be more restrictive than state law.
An East Texas attorney told KETK because of the ordinance in Athens, “if somebody helps someone that is outside of the state get an abortion outside of the state they could still be subject to a penalty in Athens,” Justin Roberts with Roberts & Roberts said.
