Athens commissioners push to protect abortion rights with new resolution on government funds

Stephanie Allen, Athens Banner-Herald
·2 min read

A group of Athens-Clarke commissioners is spearheading a resolution that would disallow the use of government funds for the criminalization of abortion care.

Following the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court last month, the Georgia Legislature is set to move forward on its six-week abortion ban.

Following the lead of South Fulton Mayor Khalid Kamau, local commissioners are co-sponsoring a resolution to address the ban. The commissioners include Mariah Parker, Jesse Houle, Tim Denson and Carol Myers.

The language of Athens-Clarke's resolution will be modeled after the resolution from Kamau and Atlanta City Councilperson Liliana Bakhtiari, and will dictate that local government funds will not be used to enforce the criminalization of abortion care.

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Parker said that Georgia is not a pro-family state and pointed to the refusal “to expand Medicaid, fully fund public schools, or universalize childcare, or raise the minimum wage” as evidence.

“We need to do what we can here in Athens to ensure that people are supported in creating the families that they want,” said Parker. “So whether that's supporting families and making sure they have access to what they need to have a family life where they can thrive or in their private medical decisions around not starting a family yet.”

Commissioner Mariah Parker delivers a speech during an abortions rights rally in response to the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade on June 25 in downtown Athens.
Commissioner Mariah Parker delivers a speech during an abortions rights rally in response to the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade on June 25 in downtown Athens.

The Atlanta resolution bans the use of city funds to investigate reports of abortion care and dictates that the police treat reports of abortion-related care as “the lowest possible priority.”

“It's very similar to that which has been proposed in those two cities,” said Parker about the Athens resolution.

The resolution could come in either July or August, depending on whether or not it is included in the July 19 agenda-setting meeting, which typically also includes a special called session of voting items.

If not, the next regular voting session of the commission is Aug. 2.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Athens-Clarke commissioners push resolution to protect abortion rights