Official in Texas city tells why he voted to become 78th ‘Sanctuary City for the Unborn’

Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in this guest post are solely those of the guest author.

On Thursday, August 7th, the City Council of Como, Texas (pop. 758), passed an “Ordinance Outlawing Abortion, declaring Como a Sanctuary City for the Unborn” in a unanimous 3-0 vote. The vote made the City of Como, located on State Hwy 11 between the cities of Sulphur Springs (pop. 16,564) and Winnsboro (pop. 3,614), the 78th city in the nation and the 61st city in Texas to pass an ordinance banning abortion. 

Como Mayor Jerry Radney had first heard about the measure on Sunday, August 3. Recognizing the opportunity, Mayor Radney called a special meeting of the Como City Council to consider the measure on Thursday, August 7. At that meeting, the city council heard a presentation from Right to Life Across Texas regarding the importance and necessity of the passage of the measure. After members of the city council asked several questions to clarify their understanding of the measure, the measure passed with the support of the full council. 

The City of Como is the first city in Hopkins County, and the seventeenth city in the Tyler-Longview Area Region to pass a ‘Sanctuary City for the Unborn’ ordinance. Other cities in the region to have passed such ordinances include: Athens (pop. 13,503), Lindale (pop. 6,923), Rusk (5,664), Gilmer (pop. 5,216), Hooks (pop. 2,769), Waskom (pop. 2,190), Naples (pop. 1,378), Big Sandy (pop. 1,343), Omaha (pop. 1,021), East Mountain (pop. 899), Wells (pop. 853), Murchison (pop. 606), Avinger (pop. 444), Gary (pop. 335), Poynor (pop. 314), and Douglassville (pop. 228). The only city in the region, and the entire state, to have recanted their ordinance is the City of Omaha – who recanted their ordinance after receiving an open records request from the ACLU of Texas in 2019. 

The six provisions of the Como Sanctuary City for the Unborn Ordinance are as follows:

(1) prohibit performing an elective abortion and aiding or abetting elective abortions within the city limits of Como,

(2) prohibit elective abortions on residents of Como – regardless of where the abortion takes place,

(3) prohibit abortion trafficking through the City of Como,

(4) prohibit the mailing of abortion-inducing drugs into the City of Como,

(5) prohibit criminal organizations from doing business inside the city limits of Como, and

(6) prohibit through or in the City of Como the transportation and disposal of the remains of unborn children who have been killed by an elective abortion across state lines and carried into Texas by waste management companies. 

The Ordinance is enforced in the same manner as the Texas Heartbeat Act — through a private enforcement mechanism. The ordinance reads, “Any person, other than the city of Como, and any officer or employee of the city, has standing to bring and may bring a civil action against any person or entity that: violates any provision” of this ordinance.

READ: City of Douglassville in Texas is 77th ‘Sanctuary City for the Unborn’ in the US

The Como Sanctuary City for the Unborn Ordinance also educates about a multitude of different pregnancy resources, including:

• Northeast Texas Heart of Hope in Sulphur Springs and the services they provide for women who find themselves in an unexpected pregnancy

• The Thriving Texas Families Program and the services provided by the state-funded program through pregnancy care providers partnered with the Texas Pregnancy Care Network and The Pregnancy Network. 

After the vote, Mayor Radney shared:

It is a great honor for the City of Como City Council to be part of something bigger than us. I believe the Lord guides us and has purpose for our lives.

It reminds me of when we had a bad accident here in our city a few years back, and it cost someone their life. Putting a red light at that intersection was an urgent priority to prevent further loss of life. And now the passage of this measure is of that same heart and mind – to do everything we can do to further protect pregnant mothers and their unborn children.

After the meeting, one of the members of the Como City Council shared his “almost abortion” story and why he had to vote in favor of the life-saving measure. The city commissioner shared about how, when he was 18, he and his girlfriend decided they would go to Houston for an abortion.

“I skipped school, withdrew the funds from my savings account, and we drove to the abortion clinic,” he said. “I stayed in the waiting room when the staff at the facility took her to the back room.” He shared that the only people in the waiting room, besides him, were several women across the room – each one talking about how many abortions they had in their lifetime:

One said this would be her first abortion, another said this was her second abortion, and another stated that it was her third time. The last woman to respond said this was her fifth abortion! After she said that, one of the ladies said, ‘Wow, you’re the winner!’ as the ladies laughed at that remark.

I didn’t understand how several women would think of it as something to laugh about! All but one of these ladies had gone through multiple abortions and even referred to the one there for her fifth abortion as ‘the winner’! I didn’t understand how any of those women could consider one of them the winner!

They were using abortion for birth control! It didn’t seem right, it didn’t feel right, and it didn’t sound right in my young mind. The casual way they talked about it bothered me a whole lot.

When his girlfriend returned to the waiting room, she was overwhelmed by the cost for a second trimester abortion. At that point, having been influenced by the discussion that he had overheard just moments before, he asked his girlfriend, “Why don’t we just have the baby?” 

He added:

From that time onward, whenever I heard news stories mentioning abortion, I paid close attention. I wanted to learn more about it.

I came to the conviction that human life begins at conception, abortion was the killing of an unborn child, and abortion was very, very wrong. But most of all, I was very, very thankful that we had not gone through with it that day.

Years later, I realized that God had saved me from making the worst decision of my life. Today, that almost aborted child is now an adult and has blessed me with a grandson — all because we decided not to go through with the abortion that day. God is good!

The City of Como follows the City of Hooks (pop. 2,769), Shelby County (pop. 24,192), and Douglassville (pop. 228) as the fourth political subdivision to pass a “Sanctuary for the Unborn” Ordinance during Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s first special session of the 89th Texas Legislature, where he has called the Texas Senate and House to pass legislation further protecting pregnant mothers and their unborn children from the harm of abortion. 

Other Hopkins County cities which could consider the ordinance in the future include: Sulphur Springs (pop. 16,564), Cumby (pop. 806), and Tira (pop. 249). Citizens who wish to see their city or county pass an ordinance further outlawing abortion in their community, regardless of what state they live in, are encouraged to sign the online petition.

Featured photo: Right to Life Across Texas Director Mark Lee Dickson, Mayor Jerry Radney, City Commissioner David Fordinal, and City Commissioner Austin Baxley pose for a picture after the historic vote. (Photo: Mark Lee Dickson)

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