Lailla Ahmady, Harris Fellow, Harris County Department of Economic Equity and Opportunity
August 11, 2022

On June 24, 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that provided the constitutional right to an abortion. This decision takes away women's fundamental right to safely and privately have an abortion, putting women all across the country in danger and in fear for their well-being. Many cities and states are collectively trying to counter this by passing temporary legislation to go against the Supreme Court's ruling.

Consider places such as California where Governor Newsom stated, “California must do everything it can to protect the fundamental rights of all women – in California and beyond.” [1] Or in Colorado where Governor Jared Polis has also mandated that abortions will be accessible in Colorado and that Colorado will not assist other states in investigations over abortions. [2]

In Harris , the Democrats on Commissioners Court have heavily been in support of having access to abortion. In their best efforts to support women, they passed items in support of women’s access to abortions, such as directing county departments to find ways to protect and expand access to affordable and no-cost contraception, sexual education, family planning, and other programs including "access to safe abortions where possible under the law." [3] They are also taking action through the Intergovernmental and Global Affairs program by researching and recommending legislative efforts to mitigate the impacts of Texas abortion laws. [4]

The question then arises is this something that concerns the county, or is this something that should be left to be dealt with by the Supreme Court or the state legislature? According to Commissioner Jack Cagle of Precinct 4, "We are a county commissioners court. It is our job to fix the potholes. It is our job to make sure that the bathrooms in our parks are clean. It is our job to make sure that we have adequate public safety. We should not be getting out of our lane telling the United States Supreme Court what to be doing." [3]

Essentially he is right; those are the commissioners’ responsibilities. But, in my opinion, that is also the bare minimum of what the commissioners can do. Fixing roads, parks, and bathrooms is the baseline of their jobs. Caring for the people of your precinct is what will set one apart. So although it may not be in their job description, being concerned about your constituents is always welcomed.

In contrast, Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia states “breaking with a 50 year precedent and taking away a woman’s right to make choices about their own bodies is appalling, amoral, and absurd.” about abortion rights being taken away. [5]

According to the Texas Tribune before Roe vs. Wade was overturned over 50,000+ Texans received abortions each year in Texas.[4] What happens to these women now? Do we let them suffer? Do we let them bring in children who most likely will not even get access to the necessities they need? Do we tear down the lives of thousands of women? Who is going to take care of these children? We already have over 400,000 kids in the foster system who need help, why would we add to that when we could help prevent it?

The facts are that abortions do not stop just because a law says so, only safe abortions stop. A point Judge Lina Hidalgo also pointed out during the session, “I am very concerned about the impact of this ruling and the near-total ban on abortion in Texas is going to have on the health of so many women and what it’s going to do to push abortions underground again, which we know causes so many dangerous procedures,” [6]

Even though it may not technically be the county’s job to protect abortion rights for women, they should, because it impacts the people of their county directly and that is more than enough for it to be an issue raised in Commissioners Court. As a young woman, I commend Judge Lina Hidalgo, Commissioner Rodney Ellis who also strongly advocates for abortion rights stating it’s an “essential health care and a human right” [6] and Commissioner Adrian Garcia for rising up and trying their best to help women across Harris County have a choice.

The content and opinions expressed on this webpage are solely the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of nor are they endorsed by the University of Houston or the Hobby School of Public Affairs.

Sources:

[1] https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/06/24/in-response-to-supreme-court-decision-governor-newsom-signs-legislation-to-protect-women-and-providers-in-california-from-abortion-bans-by-other-states/
[2] https://www.cpr.org/2022/07/06/gov-polis-issues-order-to-protect-colorados-abortion-providers-and-out-of-state-patients/
[3] https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/2022/06/28/427893/harris-county-democratic-leaders-move-to-protect-womens-access-to-abortion-and-contraception/
[4] https://www.texastribune.org/2022/05/09/texas-abortions-by-the-numbers/
[5] https://twitter.com/HarrisCoPct2/status/1540432656059584514?s=20&t=jcGM4__M3HKcypsgduxLbw
[6] https://thetexan.news/harris-county-to-explore-taxpayer-funded-options-for-promoting-abortion/
[image used] https://www.invisiblechildren.org/2020/08/23/taking-care-of-foster-care/