New Mexico is a solidly pro-abortion state – at least in terms of laws passed by the legislature. But that's not the case in many of the state's smaller cities. Mark Lee Dickson, founder of Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn, speaks to the organization's recent success in the Land of Enchantment.
'"[Last week] the city council of Eunice, New Mexico, ended up [unanimously] passing an ordinance … a Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance, which requires compliance with federal law that prohibits the mailing and receiving of abortion-inducing drugs and abortion paraphernalia," he explains.
That community, according to Dickson, became the first in the state to pass such an ordinance since the state filed suit against Hobbs, Clovis, Lea County, and Roosevelt County in New Mexico for the passage of similar ordinances. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez is asking the State Supreme Court to declare those ordinances unconstitutional, arguing that those who have enacted the ordinances are "relying on a flawed interpretation" of a 19th century federal statute.
Dickson, however, contends Torrez and his office cannot ignore existing law. "They can't undo the reality that in 1873 the United States Congress passed these laws which are still on the books and have never been declared invalid by the United States Supreme Court," he tells AFN.
But even if AG Torrez succeeds, Dickson's organization has already obtained attorneys to represent the local and county governments free of charge.
Eunice becomes the 65th city in the country to take action to keep abortion out of their jurisdictions – and according to Dickson, it's not expected to be the last in New Mexico to do so. The state, he says, "appears to be full of communities who do not want abortion in their communities and are willing to fight for an abortion-free New Mexico."
