The State Of Alabama’s Controversial New Abortion Ban Law Is Drawing Some Serious Protests From Los Angeles County In The Form Of A Year Long Travel Ban
In one of the most controversial pieces of legislation to be passed in the United States in some time, the state of Alabama has just enacted a new abortion ban law that appears to be a direct challenge to the precedent of Roe v. Wade. NBC News has recently reported the fact that this new law will make it a felony offense for any doctor to perform an abortion procedure for a woman during any stage of her pregnancy. Alabama’s Governor is Kay Ivey and she recently signed the bill that had passed through the state’s legislature into state law. The law is being described as what amounts to an almost complete ban of the practice of abortion in the state of Alabama and it has rapidly drawn massive criticism from across the United States, including plenty of criticisms from the leaders of other states within the union.
The new bill which went into effect as of the 15th of May in 2019 has also imposed a ban on any abortions being carried out even when there are circumstances such as incest and rape. This highly controversial piece of legislation from the state legislature of Alabama was first introduced by state House Representative Terri Collins. One of the regions of the United States where a strong amount of criticism has come regarding this new Alabama law is the state of California and government officials in the county of Los Angeles have just issued a ban on travel to Alabama for any type of official business as a response to the controversial new piece of legislation.
Officials in Los Angeles County have just announced as of the 24th of May, 2019 that a travel ban of one-years’ time is being imposed in protest of the new Alabama law that has placed such unpopular restrictions on access to abortion in the state of Alabama. Officials in Los Angeles County have expressed their stance that the new HG 314 is a major affront to the progress on women’s rights that have been made over the last century. According to Hilda Solis, the County Supervisor for Los Angeles County, the law represents an attack on the rights that women have fought so hard for in terms of taking control of their reproductive systems.
Opponents of the new Alabama law are advocating for a strong measure of solidarity in order to make their opposition clear to the lawmakers who have passed this controversial new piece of legislative action. Actions such as this new travel ban are a part of this effort to safeguard Constitutionally backed rights for women to have access to abortion in a safe manner that is legal. Due to this, Los Angeles County is taking this strong stance to stand against this latest attack on the rights of women.
The specifics of the new Los Angeles County to Alabama travel ban includes a stop on any official business being conducted between the two entities. There are exceptions being made for cases that are legally required as well as training exercises for emergency response. Officials from Los Angeles County have also put together a letter addressed to Governor Kay Ivey of Alabama that insists that this new bill must be repealed. County officials plan to release similar statements to several other states that are contemplating similar legislative actions in the future. The states of Maryland and Colorado are considering a similar travel ban protest that will be aimed at the state of Alabama. Jena Griswold is the Secretary of State for the state of Colorado and she has banned staff members from her office from travelling to Alabama in the wake of the state’s controversial abortion ban.
Colorado’s Griswold has stressed the fact that her state needs to take a stance against this move on the part of the Alabama state legislature. The fact that the state has flown in the face of what is best for women’s healthcare and created an unsafe situation for the women who reside in the state is the justification for her strong stand that is being taken. She has joined in the call that government organizations from other states should form a wall of resistance against the actions taken in Alabama and demand that the decision is reversed in short order.
The new travel ban in regard to Los Angeles County was approved by a vote of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. The body of officials voted that a ban of one-years’ time would be imposed and that this would affect all travel from Los Angeles County officials to Alabama for any type of official business while the controversial new law continues to stand. Officials for the county assert that this new law effectively stands as an attack on the women of the entire United States and not just the women of the state of Alabama. The counties officials have noted that the extreme nature of the new law as well as the fact that it flies in the face of the Constitution of the United States. The human rights violation nature of the new law is also a major part of the response that is being levied against the state of Alabama by Los Angeles County.
The sentiment of Hilda Solis has been echoed by Los Angeles County official Sheila Kuehl who has emphasized the importance of women from across the United States coming together to fight against these kinds of laws being allowed to proliferate across the rest of the country. She emphasizes the negative effects that these laws will pose towards women’s health. This sentiment certainly seems to be gaining a lot of traction across the United States as this latest piece of legislation out of Alabama is undoubtedly one of the most controversial and unpopular on a national level that has been seen in some time. The fact is that the new Alabama law has received national criticism from both sides of the political spectrum with both Democrats and Republicans coming out in opposition to the strict nature of the new law.
Even controversial United States President Donald Trump has taken steps to put some distance between himself and the controversial new abortion law that has been approved by the state of Alabama. Trump and several other prominent Republican lawmakers have made it clear that they feel that the new law in Alabama goes too far. This is in spite of the fact that Trump characterizes himself as being pro-life. Regardless of this fact, he is among a large group of Republicans that feel that the state of Alabama’s new law is too strict. Trump has pointed out that he does not agree with a ban on abortion in cases of incest or incidents where the woman was raped.
One thing seems certain and that is the fact that this new law in Alabama is not one that many Americans are willing to let be swept under the rug. It appears to be quite clear now that the pressure that is being applied to lawmakers in Alabama is only just beginning and can realistically be expected to continue to ramp up if the state’s government fails to reconsider its stance on this highly controversial issue. This is undoubtedly one of the most emotionally charged issues facing the citizens of the United States today, not just due to the new decision made by the state of Alabama, but since there is such a huge amount of division across the population regarding what the laws should be regarding women’s access to safe and legal abortion services. The coming months will no doubt continue to be filled with stories involving the growing resistance movement that is building in opposition to the controversial decision that has been enacted by the state of Alabama.
