Texas County Passes Ordinance to Protect Babies From Abortion, Stop Trafficking Women
Texas County became the third in the nation to enact legislation to protect unborn babies from abortion through the Sanctuary County for the Unborn Ordinance.
On Friday, the Mitchell County Commission voted 4-0 in favor of the pro-life ordinance, which would ban the killing of unborn babies in abortions as well as the trafficking of women and girls out of the county for elective abortions. .
Mark Lee Dickson, a director with Right to Life of East Texas and founder of the Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn initiative, shared the news on Facebook. He said Mitchell County was the first in Texas and the third in the nation to pass a pro-life ordinance. Additionally, 67 cities also voted to use Sanctuary City for unborn ordinances.
After the vote, Commissioner Jeremy Strain said he hopes their action will encourage other counties to do the same.
“What a tremendous day for Mitchell County,” Strain said in a statement online. “I’m excited to lead the state of Texas. We stand and fight for the unborn, those who cannot fight for themselves. I hope and pray that other counties across the state will jump on board and lead the way by doing the same. God bless Mitchell County!”
Texas law protects unborn babies by banning elective abortions, but the ordinance puts additional local protections in place.
The ordinance prohibits elective abortions within unincorporated areas of Mitchell County, as well as aiding or abetting abortions performed on residents “regardless of the location of the abortion, regardless of the law of the jurisdiction where the abortion occurred, and regardless of whether the person knew or should have known that the abortion was performed or induced on a resident of the unincorporated area of Mitchell County.”
It also prohibits abortion trafficking by making it unlawful “for any person to knowingly transport any individual for the purpose of providing or obtaining an elective abortion, wherever the elective abortion takes place.” The provision applies only if the individual’s transportation “begins, ends, or passes through the unincorporated area of Mitchell County.”
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State Rep. Dustin Burrows, a Republican whose district includes Mitchell County, celebrated the news after the vote.
“I am proud that Mitchell County is the first county to declare itself a sanctuary for the unborn,” Burrows said in a statement online. “This is a huge victory for the pro-life movement in Texas. Thank you to all the grassroots advocates who worked tirelessly to make this happen, and to the commissioners who showed the political courage to vote this into law.”
Mitchell County is part of a grassroots movement working to protect unborn babies at the local level. So far, 67 cities in Texas, Ohio, Nebraska, Louisiana, Iowa, Illinois and New Mexico and three counties have passed Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinances that protect unborn babies through bans on abortion and similar restrictions. More cities, including Nevada and Virginia, are considering ordinances this year.
Other cities and counties have passed pro-life resolutions, which are statements of support but not enforceable laws, recognizing the right of unborn babies to life. In Arkansas, at least 19 counties and 10 cities and towns have passed pro-life resolutions, according to the Family Council of Arkansas. Several North Carolina counties have passed pro-life resolutions, and New Mexico Otero county commissioners approved a resolution in July condemning pro-abortion laws in their state.
