Councilmember Nithya Raman Introduces Motion For Ordinance To Establish The City Of Los Angeles As A Safe-Haven For Abortion Care

For Immediate Release: June 28, 2022

LOS ANGELES — Today, Councilmember Nithya Raman introduced a motion, co-presented by Council President Nury Martinez, calling for an ordinance to ban City resources from being used to detain persons procuring, performing, or aiding in abortion care or to cooperate with out-of-state investigations related to abortion care procured in the City of Los Angeles. Additionally, the motion instructs the City Administrative Officer (CAO) to report back on the feasibility of allocating funding to help subsidize costs for persons from other states seeking abortion care in the City of Los Angeles. This legislation comes on the heels of last week’s Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, reversing a 50-year legal precedent protecting a woman’s right to obtain an abortion. 

“Friday’s Supreme Court decision dealt a devastating blow to our civil liberties,” said Councilmember Raman. “Twenty-six states are now poised to ban abortion effectively immediately, and many are concurrently considering legislation that would criminalize out of state abortion care. As we move forward in this new reality, we must ensure that Los Angeles acts as a sanctuary city for those seeking or assisting abortion care from outside our borders.”

A study by UCLA’s Center on Reproductive Health, Law, and Policy estimates that 8,000 to 16,000 more people will travel to California each year for abortion care. Los Angeles will thus begin to see an inflow of people seeking access to abortion care within City boundaries.  

“When the decision leaked last month, I put forward a motion so our city could get ahead of this and begin preparing for an influx of women seeking care,” said Council President Nury Martinez. “Women should not live in fear of making the trip to Los Angeles for essential, legal, safe healthcare, just to be detained or receive criminal charges in their home state. Our city will not stand to serve as an extension of these conservative states. We will not do the heartless bidding of lawmakers that don’t believe women deserve bodily autonomy.”

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