Austin, Texas, funds abortion instead of police
By AJ Dominque III — Proponents of the “Defund the Police” movement spreading in Democrat-run cities across the country have added a new component to their mission to “reimagine policing”—diverting funds from police departments to help fund abortion-related costs.
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Recently, the all-Democrat city council of Austin, Texas, voted to approve a budget that includes slashing the Austin Police Department’s budget by one third and reallocating $100,000 to “abortion access.” This taxpayer money will provide financial support for housing, transportation, and other costs associated with women seeking abortions.
This budget is the city council’s second step in using funds for “abortion access” to skirt a Texas state law that forbids the use of taxpayer funds to directly support abortion providers. To get around the law, the city contracted with local abortion support organizations to provide $150,000 for “abortion logistics services,” including travel to the clinics, lodging, childcare, and legal services.
One such organization is the Lilith Fund—an organization involved in the ACLU’s lawsuit against Sanctuaries for the Unborn for their work on a local ordinance to criminalize abortion, with exceptions, which was passed by the Waskom city council in Texas. It was this ordinance, and six others in nearby Texas cities, that inspired abortion advocates and Austin city council members to work together on this new strategy.
The Austin city council has decided that it’s more important to help pay for abortion costs at the expense of hiring more police officers to protect their citizens. Its decision shows that the Austin city council is not only proactively hostile to the lives of pre-born children, but they are unconcerned about protecting the lives of those children when they are born and become citizens of the city.
Texas Values, an organization whose mission is to preserve and advance a culture of family values in the state of Texas, has filed a lawsuit against the City of Austin for this unlawful use of $250,000 in taxpayer money.
We must be vigilant
The importance of taking the fight to end abortion to the local level is evident in the Austin city council’s decision, and there are several things that citizens can do to engage in this battle.
Advocates of the abortion industry use word games to cover up support for murdering children. So read through your local budget proposal to look for unusual line items that use words like “equal access,” “healthcare equality,” “reproductive justice,” and “women’s healthcare.” As citizen legislators, it is our responsibility to be vigilant and identify the underhanded tactics used by abortion proponents. Should you spot one of these tactics in your city’s budget, attend the next meeting and speak up to expose these efforts. Get your state-level representatives involved to help with exposure and support.
Texas state officials have already come out against the Austin city council’s strategy, with Governor Abbott introducing a legislative proposal to freeze property tax increases in cities that defund their police departments. While that may address the overarching issue of police funding, it does little to push back on the way Austin has strategically worked around state law to provide public dollars in support of abortion. More must be done.
Reimagine “reimagining” funds
Along with ensuring your local tax dollars are not being funneled to support abortion assistance, look for opportunities to “reimagine” how other funds can be used to promote life.
If Democrats can “reimagine policing” to include funding abortion, then why can’t local funds be “reimagined” to promote life?
Learn about the Personhood Alliance’s Safe Cities movement, which takes a phased approach to divesting from the culture of death and investing in a culture of life at the local level. These efforts may include allocating dollars in your local budget to provide resources to pro-life pregnancy centers and other organizations that provide assistance to families and pregnant women.
The Safe Cities initiative is being implemented through Personhood Alliance’s state affiliates. Visit our map to find an affiliate in your state. If you do not have an affiliate in your state, you can apply to start one.
AJ Dominique III is a marketing and management professional and a contributing writer for the Personhood Alliance. He is a life-long Christian, a husband, and the proud father of two who is trying to do his part to protect the sanctity of human life and promote the importance of the nuclear family.
I could not believe that he comment was made that neither the Old or New Testaments of the Bible mentioned nothing specifically about abortion. Tell them to read closely and focus on the Ten Commandments…”Thou shall not kill” !!
That means that a life taken at any form of development…our journey…. is killing!
It has been apparent that the reason for trying to justify killing an unborn child is generally one of pure selfishness. A life
It makes me sick to my stomach. You are so right – “thou shall not kill” (sometimes interpreted as “thou shall not commit murder”) pretty much covers everything. Those who uphold this horrific behavior are much like the child who, after being told not to eat junk food in order not to spoil his dinner, then gorges on potato chips and says, “you said ‘junk food’, but not specifically ‘chips'”. I imagine any of us standing before our Creator and saying, “Well, you said ‘murder’, but you didn’t specifically say ‘abortion'” – as though this were a mere technicality.
The Austin Chronicle ran a horrible article celebrating this redirection of funds, calling it a win for abortion, referring to pro-life people “anti-choice” and to the murder of innocents at one point as “abortion care”. Sounds akin to “mostly peaceful protest” – these grisly murders of precious, unborn souls are “mostly peaceful, caring, and gentle” in the minds of those forcing abortion down society’s throat. I wonder if they can tell themselves that (and shout it to us nonstop) because these poor children cannot run. They cannot scream or cry or even begin to defend themselves. They are the perfect victims because they remain silent.
Hi Jim. Yes, the sixth commandment is indeed a clear argument against this. I think you may have meant your comment for another article we just published – “What the Bible says (and doesn’t say) about abortion.” https://personhood.org/2020/08/25/what-the-bible-says-and-doesnt-say-about-abortion/
Why do democrats hate babies so much? I don’t understand. Hey, girlsGod will forgive you if you just ask. To all dem’s that are pushing this I really hope that you hear the screams of the babies, you are pushing death on. Every time you close your eyes. Girls don’t kill your baby sign him or her over to me.
I disagree with the statement that the Old and New Testament don’t mention abortion. It clearly states: “You shall not kill” and you shall love your brothers and sisters.
Let’s not be blind, let’s open our eyes to the words of Jesus! Let’s stop abortion!!!
Thank you for your comment, Jorge. The statement was in reference to a different article on our site “What the Bible says (and doesn’t say) about abortion”. One of the main arguments for why abortion and Christianity should be considered “in alignment” is because the word “abortion” is never mentioned. The article refutes that argument and many others. The six commandments is definitely a way to answer this statement, along with Jesus’s command to love our neighbors as ourselves. We’re on the same page here, and opening our eyes to the words of Jesus is definitely what we need to do! Thank you again.