Baltimore City Councilmembers Pledge To Protect Women's Rights Following Supreme Court Ruling
BALTIMORE -- The Baltimore City Council pledged on Tuesday to protect the women residing in the city and across the country.
Reproductive rights were protected in Baltimore and will not change due to the Supreme Court's recent overturning of Roe v. Wade.
While Maryland and Baltimore are areas where abortion is still legal, many states have now made abortion illegal due to the recent court ruling. Baltimore is aware that other state residents may come to the city seeking medical care.
"Pound for pound, we are one of the most scrappiest and compassionate places in America," City Councilman Zeke Cohen said. "We will be a safe haven and we will not allow the Supreme Court to have the last word."
"It is our obligation to rise up and meet needs of women across the country," Mayor Brandon Scott said.
The Baltimore civic fund has pledged $300,000 towards efforts to help women receive reproductive medical care, and Open Society Institute has donated an additional quarter of $1 million to this effort.
Scott did not explain exactly how the money will be spent in regards to assisting out-of-state patients.
Instead, he said the city is working with its partners to ensure all women have access to safe healthcare.
Cohen announced on Tuesday afternoon that additional funding was recently made available to assist women seeking assistance with reproductive healthcare.
"This spring, I introduced a resolution with Councilwoman Phylicia Porter calling on Mayor Scott to create a reproductive rights fund," Cohen said. "Today, that fund received $550,000 to support local organizations."
The additional funding will help women obtain safe and legal abortions, Cohen said.
"In light of the horrific decision by the Supreme Court to reverse Roe Vs Wade, these funds will be all the more important," Cohen said.
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra said President Joe Biden has instructed him to make sure women who need reproductive healthcare have access to it.
He went on to say a federal reproductive acts task force is being deployed to assist women as they look to find services.
"This is a critical moment in our history and how we respond will speak to how we view the rights dignity and well-being of women everywhere," Becerra said. "This is a moment of crisis."
