The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has approved a one-year suspension on travel to Alabama to protest its toughest-in-the-nation abortion law, calling abortion “part of the very fabric of the United States.”
“This challenge by Alabama and other states would overturn decades of precedent,” said supervisor Hilda Solis in a statement. “It is an attack not only confined to the residents of those states, but an act of aggression upon all of us.”
The ban prohibits official travel by county employees to the red state, but allows exceptions for “emergency response, training, or assistance, or other legally-required matters where the failure to authorize such travel would seriously harm the County’s interests.”
The supervisors also voted Monday to send letters urging Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and legislators to repeal HB 314.
“The constitutional and human right to a safe and legal abortion is part of the very fabric of the United States,” said Ms. Solis. “As such, Los Angeles County will stand against all attempts to dismantle the protections afforded by Roe v. Wade and the U.S. Constitution.”
Ms. Solis previously served in Congress and as Labor Secretary under President Barack Obama.
Debemos ser solidarios y oponernos a las leyes extremistas que ponen en riesgo la salud y el bienestar de mujeres. La ley de Alabama que prohíbe la interrupción de embarazos le niega a mujeres sus derechos a la salud reproductiva. De @Univision34LA: https://t.co/voXUdLbdRW
— Hilda Solis (@HildaSolis) May 23, 2019
Unintended reward!
— Kaya Jones (@KayaJones) May 23, 2019
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Los Angeles County bans official travel to Alabama due to abortion bill https://t.co/X2UySNvTIJ
Seven other states have also approved laws this year curtailing access to abortion, but instead of suspending travel to those states, the supervisors decided to send letters expressing their opposition and calling for the “immediate repeal” of those laws.
The other seven states are Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Utah.
Despite calls by pro-choice advocates for an Alabama boycott, the response has been muted, with only two state officials announcing travel bans so far: Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold and Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot.
California already bans travel to Alabama and nine other red states over their “discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression,” such as laws on transgender-bathroom access and religious-based adoption and foster-care services.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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