The City of West Hollywood responded to today’s US Supreme Court decision ending constitutional protections for abortion that had been in place nearly 50 years by affirming its commitment to being a pro-choice city. The decision by the Court’s conservative majority overturns Roe v. Wade and is expected to lead to abortion bans in roughly half of states.
According to the majority opinion by Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., the Supreme Court of the United States has voted to overturn Roe v. Wade’s holding of a federal constitutional right to an abortion. The landmark US Supreme Court decision was issued in 1973 and legalized abortion in the United States.
The City of West Hollywood will host a news conference with members of the West Hollywood City Council today, Friday, June 24, 2022 at 12 p.m. at the West Hollywood City Hall Community Plaza, located at 8300 Santa Monica Boulevard.
Each member of the West Hollywood City Council has issued a short statement:
“Although I am not surprised, I am terribly disappointed that SCOTUS would overturn a case that was decided decades ago, by its predecessors,” said City of West Hollywood Mayor Lauren Meister. “Instead of moving forward, the Supreme Court has decided to go back to a time when women were second class citizens, without the right to make personal choices about their own healthcare, their own bodies, or their own well-being. President Biden and Congress must make the right to choose the law of the land. Otherwise, one by one, civil rights will be taken away. The City of West Hollywood must send a very clear message to Washington DC: an attack on women is an attack on LGBTQ people, is an attack on people of color, is an attack on the Jewish community, is an attack on all of us. We cannot be silent, and we will not be silenced.”
“The City of West Hollywood stands with all of those whose lives are now in more danger than ever as a result of this ruling,” said City of West Hollywood Mayor Pro Tempore Sepi Shyne. “This Supreme Court decision sets women’s equality and bodily autonomy back decades. The City has been and will continue to work with Los Angeles County, the State of California, and our social service providers to ensure that we continue to fight for reproductive rights and provide a safe haven for women and transgender men accessing healthcare.”
“It’s clear to me that this version of the US Supreme Court is untrustworthy, uninterested in history, and perhaps now, permanently broken. This is a strange and scary time in America,” said City of West Hollywood Councilmember John D’Amico.
“Today’s SCOTUS decision is not a surprise: our rights are (and have been) under attack,” said City of West Hollywood Councilmember John M. Erickson. “We must band together to ensure everyone in this country has the right to access a safe and legal abortion. We’ve experienced and seen great progress but we must never forget the past and now we need to be prepared for those difficult battles to come in the future. West Hollywood will always be right here fighting for what’s right.”
“Today is a painful day in American history,” said City of West Hollywood Councilmember Lindsey P. Horvath. “This Supreme Court has decided millions of people should be without reproductive healthcare access, putting our lives at risk and deepening political divisions in this country more than ever before. There is no easy way to heal the wounds of this legal assault on the women of our country. Reproductive freedom – safe, affordable, accessible, culturally-competent, gender-affirming quality healthcare including abortion – must be the law of the land and we must demand our federal representatives immediately end the filibuster and pass legislation that protects this most sacred right. This decision places an even greater burden on people who are already at risk – women, transgender people, the poor, immigrants, and people of color. It is the duty of our government to protect our most vulnerable, not to further endanger our safety. In particular, US Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski have a moral obligation to stand up and fight. They claim to be pro-choice but their recent votes and resulting inaction speak otherwise. We must flood their phones, their emails, and offices demanding they honor their word and responsibility. Without a doubt, California will be a safe haven for people in need of abortions and reproductive healthcare access. Los Angeles County will be the battleground for the fight to ensure no one will ever be denied their right to privacy and their right to decide whether and when to become pregnant. As the first declared pro-choice city in America, West Hollywood will continue to be at the heart of that all-important work. Generations of women have fought tirelessly to prevent this day from ever occurring. We cannot allow this moment to be the endpoint of our liberation. Too much is at stake and too much has already been taken.”
The City of West Hollywood was the first city in the nation, in 1993, to declare itself pro-choice. Almost three decades later, West Hollywood continues its efforts to vigorously defend women’s reproductive rights and access to healthcare. The City has continually supported state and federal legislation protecting and advancing women’s reproductive rights and access to healthcare.
The City of West Hollywood regularly monitors policies and proposals that impact West Hollywood’s residents, including women, LGBTQ residents, people with disabilities, seniors, people of color, and immigrants, among others, and the City will continue to be a champion and defender of health equity and reproductive freedom.
In May 2019, the City Council of the City of West Hollywood, unanimously approved a Resolution to denounce anti-choice legislation in Georgia and other states, such as Alabama. With approval of that Resolution, West Hollywood became the first city in the nation to enact financial sanctions and act against states that have passed extreme anti-choice legislation.
In September 2021, the City Council of the City of West Hollywoodunanimously approved a Resolution denouncing the Texas law banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy (SB 8), developing additional financial sanctions until such time as the new law is revoked, and declaring the City of West Hollywood a safe harbor for reproductive freedom.
For more information, please contact Hernán Molina, the City of West Hollywood’s Governmental Affairs Liaison, at (323) 848-6364 or at hmolina@weho.org
