Since abortion is illegal in Texas under the Pre-Roe v. Wade statutes which criminalize abortion from the moment of conception, Whole Woman’s Health is closing their abortion facilities in Fort Worth, McKinney, Austin, and McAllen and relocating to southeastern New Mexico. Dallas Morning News reports, “Whole Woman’s Health did not specify a city for the New Mexico clinic but said officials are considering the southeastern part of the state. Hobbs, a city of around 40,000 a few miles from the Texas border, is in that region and around 400 miles from Dallas.”
As a result of this news, Right To Life of Lea County, New Mexico organized a community meeting on Saturday, July 9th at the Southeastern Baptist Association Building in Hobbs, New Mexico. Over 100 residents attended the gathering, which had been scheduled only 36 hours before. Speaking at the meeting was Senator David Gallegos (New Mexico SD 41 – Eunice) and a director with Right To Life of East Texas.
Senator Gallegos shared, “I have been in the state legislature for ten years and I have always fought for life. Now Whole Woman’s Health out of Texas is targeting southeast New Mexico, bringing the fight to my hometown. We will be doing everything we can to fight the abortion industry in southeast New Mexico and we will not lose this fight!”
Located in Lea County, the City of Hobbs is in a very conservative area. During the 2020 election Trump received 79% of the vote, making Lea County Trump’s strongest county in New Mexico. Right To Life of Lea County and Senator David Gallegos intend to work with Right To Life of East Texas and the Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn Initiative to do everything they can to prevent Whole Woman’s Health from ending the lives of innocent children in Southeastern New Mexico.
“Texas does not need to forget their neighbor,” said Mike Seibel, an attorney in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Seibel has been following the uptick of abortions being performed on Texas residents at the abortion facilities in Albuquerque – as evidenced by the number of license plates from Texas which can be seen in the parking lot and also the news of Texas residents being flown in for abortions.
Seibel continued, “Pro-lifers are currently putting in sixteen hour days across the State of New Mexico. We are already working to combat the influx, but New Mexico is going to need a lot of help to defend women from the dangerous industry that is taking over our state.”
Earlier this week Alamo Women’s Reproductive Services in San Antonio announced that they are joining Whole Woman’s Health in moving to New Mexico. The future home for the San Antonio facility is set to be about five hours north of Hobbs in Albuquerque.
Texas abortion facilities are not the only ones relocating to New Mexico. Jackson Women’s Health, the abortion facility which was at the center of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, is moving to Las Cruces, New Mexico.
The Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn Initiative is urging Texas cities to do their part by passing enforceable ordinances that would, under city law, outlaw abortions performed on the residents of their cities – regardless if those abortions are performed in Abilene, Texas or in Albuqueque, New Mexico. While not every Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance contains this provision, the provision is included on the ordinances set for the November 8, 2022 ballot in the cities of Abilene (pop. 124,407) , San Angelo (pop. 101,612), Plainview (pop. 22,343), and possibly Athens, Texas (pop. 13,121).
The New Mexico ordinances are not expected to look exactly like the Texas ordinances, but are being written in accordance with all state and federal laws and the intent to go as far as possible to protect unborn children who are being killed in the State of New Mexico.
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