The city of Lubbock, Texas approved an ordinance banning abortion procedures within city limits and declaring itself a “sanctuary city for the unborn” Saturday.
While not the first, Lubbock is now the largest city in the U.S. to approve such a measure, but it will likely face legal challenges from abortion advocates who argue the measure is unconstitutional. The move comes just months after Planned Parenthood opened its first clinic in the city, according to the Texas Tribune.
Lubbock residents backed the measure with 62% of the vote on Saturday, joining dozens of other Texas cities that have already passed similar ordinances. Lubbock is the first of these cities to make a declaration while already having an abortion clinic within its limits. (RELATED: Here’s What Texan Pro-Lifers Have To Say About Their ‘Sanctuary City For The Unborn’)
Demonstrators hold up placards during a Planned Parenthood rally outside the State Capitol in Austin, Texas, April 5, 2017. (REUTERS/Ilana Panich-Linsman)
The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas has made known its opposition to pro-life “sanctuary cities,” having sued seven local governments in the past. (RELATED: Texas Town Outlaws Abortion, Declares It A Sanctuary For The Unborn)
“ACLU has a long history of challenging unconstitutional abortion bans and will continue to fight to protect the fundamental rights of the people of Lubbock,” the organization said in a Saturday statement.
Due to the existing precedent of Roe v. Wade, however, the city’s government will not enforce the abortion ban, relying instead on lawsuits from citizens, according to the Tribune.
While Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has not publicly expressed a view on abortion sanctuary cities, he did sign a ban on sanctuary cities with respect to illegal immigration in 2017, arguing that city governments cannot instruct local police to not comply with federal immigration law.