In a state where abortion rights are protected, Gallup council considers new restrictions

Loxitawny Campbell, 17, stood before the Gallup City Council and read a short but powerful poem expressing her pro-choice views during a contentious meeting last month about a Texas-based group's push for an anti-abortion ordinance in the Navajo border town.

“How dare they put thousands of lives at risk while flaunting the words 'they want what's best for the child,'” her poem began. “What about those who grow up in a world where firearms are more important than themselves? What about those who grow up in a world where our worth is found in between our legs? 

“They preach the words of being a voice to the voiceless, while impairing the voices of the people who bring life into this world,” she continued. “How dare you leave us dehumanized and animalized. How dare you. My body. My choice.”

Campbell was one of 11 people who were allowed to speak against a proposed ordinance restricting access to abortion. Another 11 people voiced their views in favor of the proposed ordinance, which was supported by the Texas group "Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn" and other Gallup community members. 

The council heard testimony from both sides of the proposal. Any vote on the ordinance would take place after a work session or regular City Council meeting yet to be scheduled.

The right to an abortion is legal in New Mexico and was spelled out further in House Bill 7, signed by Gov. Michelle Lujan in March. The measure, the Reproductive and Gender-Affirming Health Care Act, prohibits public bodies, including local municipalities, from denying, restricting or discriminating against an individual’s right to use or refuse reproductive health care or health care related to gender.

Elsewhere:South Carolina six-week abortion ban becomes law. Here's what's next

The proposed Gallup ordinance would criminalize the purchase and use of instruments and medications used for the purpose of abortion care, which health care providers say will have dire consequences for patients. The ordinance was brought to the city by the Texas group, which helps elected officials write specific language for the location. The group also includes a letter from an attorney willing to stand behind the council if any litigation comes as a result of the passing of the ordinance.

Gallup resident Jill O’Keefe said she had been speaking against abortion rights across New Mexico and in many churches, and in many instances, numerous women have confided in her about the regret they have for choosing to have an abortion.

“One lady, she said ‘once I had it I couldn’t live with myself,’ so she turned to drugs and alcohol,” O’Keefe said. “We do know God’s words say they are life. We do know in the animal kingdom mothers protect their young, they don’t destroy them. When that is done outside of God’s word and outside of God’s plan it causes torment for the individual.”

'Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn' has supported similar measures elsewhere 

Gallup was one stop on the tour by Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn. Efforts by the Texas group and its leader, Mark Lee Dickson, have been ongoing since 2019, and according to its website, the group has worked with 67 cities and two counties to pass abortion restrictions. 

The Supreme Court’s decision last year to reverse Roe v. Wade paved the way for states to curtail or ban abortion rights. Following the decision, Hobbs, Clovis, Eunice and Edgewood, all New Mexico cities, passed ordinances to restrict access to reproductive health care in their communities. 

Earlier this year, in response to Hobbs and Clovis, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez filed an extraordinary writ in the New Mexico Supreme Court against the cities and Roosevelt and Lea counties. 

“This is not Texas. Our state Constitution does not allow cities, counties or private citizens to restrict women’s reproductive rights,” Torrez said in a January news release. “Today’s action should send a strong message that my office will use every available tool to swiftly and decisively uphold individual liberties against unconstitutional overreach.”

Along with Torrez and Lujan Grisham’s public statements against these ordinances, a group of concerned Gallup residents opposing the Texas group argued that the ordinances are still dangerous.

The residents argued that Gallup could become a pawn in a larger game to lay legal groundwork for anti-abortion bans both statewide and federally. They said the Texas Legislature used the ordinances to write anti-abortion laws, and noted that the leaders of the groups have explicitly said they hope to spark a case with the U.S. Supreme Court.

The proposal's critics also said the ordinance would create an atmosphere of anti-abortion sentiment within the community, making it an even more unsafe place to seek abortion for the community, and that, if it passed, it would be more difficult to revoke it. 

Gallup has a population of nearly 21,000, and of that, more than 10,000 people are Native American, according to the U.S. Census. There were tribal members from Zuni and Navajo Nation who took it upon themselves to speak for the entirety of both tribes, since Gallup is a main border town for the tribes. The Gallup Indian Health Services is also located in the town. 

“I believe in pro-life,” said Ella Wilson, a member of the Navajo Nation and a Gallup resident who supported the ordinance. “My belief, and my family, and a lot of the tribal members, council members is pro-life. We believe our children, the unborn, are sacred. Their lives are sacred.”

The Gallup Indian Health Service is a 99-bed hospital and is one of the largest in the Indian Health Services network with 250,000 outpatient encounters, and 5,800 inpatient admission annually, according to its website.

After 'Roe' decision:Indigenous law experts say it's wrong to expect tribes to offer 'safe harbor' abortion services

When Roe v. Wade was overturned, some non-Native Americans suggested that tribal lands have the ability to allow clinics to offer abortions and such a plan should be considered. The idea was quickly disputed by Indigenous legal experts in a piece about tribal law and abortion.

"For Native women, if their only access to health care has been IHS, they have been restricted for a very long time," said Stacy Leeds, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation who serves as a foundation professor of law and leadership at Arizona State University's Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law in a previous interview. "This is not a new restriction on them. It may be new to everyone else not to have a choice, but this is something that women in Indian Country have had since the Hyde Amendment was passed."

Gallup council meeting brings out strong views on both sides

Those who spoke about the ordinance seemed to be divided between religion and science, reflecting America’s political climate.

“I believe God is love and life begins at conception,” Gallup resident Eileen Dorazio said. “I really want to support the sanctuary city ordinance here in Gallup. Let’s be known for life, amen.”

In addition to the IHS facility, Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital is also located in Gallup. Both institutions have had a trying few years because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which hit the Navajo Nation hard early on. The IHS hospital’s age has also been an issue amid work to replace the aging building.

Other issues include Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital’s administrative issues and the closure of its maternity ward. Now local health care providers have to deal with an out-of-state group influencing the type of care allowed in the town they work and live in. 

Dr. Connie Liu, a local OB-GYN, introduced herself, especially to those “who are from out of town” and acknowledged those in the room, on Zoom or outside of the building who were against the ordinance.

She asked those who were seated inside to raise their hands if they knew someone who had an abortion, then asked them to raise their hands if they worked in health care, and to keep them up if they have taken care of a patient who has needed an abortion.

“I have one more question for you: Who of you believe that you can hold your own moral views about abortion and still trust a person and their family to make this decision for themselves,” Liu asked of those in the meeting. “Our group is here to tell you a few things: First of all, we believe that politics has no role in people’s reproductive lives or choices. Second of all, anti-abortion ordinances are not intended to make health care safer for people.”

The right to abortion is supported by an overwhelming majority of New Mexicans.  In one poll, 77% of New Mexicans agree that “I can hold my own moral views about abortion and still trust a woman and her family to make this decision for themselves.”  This included 79% of Catholics, 72% of Christians, and 58% of Evangelical Christians. 

Liu, who wasn't the only Gallup physician to speak, said an ordinance in Gallup would increase the dangers of being pregnant, as well as make it difficult to seek women’s health care. She said six of the eight doctors in Gallup that provide these types of care were present at the meeting and agree with the danger an ordinance would have.

Emily Ellison, executive director of the Batter Families Services, which provides emergency shelter for domestic abuse victims and other programs, said it's a priority for the government to protect women and children before getting into "extreme political" issues such as abortion, and emphasized keeping church and state separate. Ellison recently ran for Navajo Nation president.

"I believe life is freedom, and freedom is choice," said Dr. Danny Mays, a local physician who called into the meeting to give his support against the ordinance. "I completely respect the passion for those who have advocated for life, but your beliefs cannot be forced on the rest of us who don't share them. It's just not right."

Arlyssa Becenti covers Indigenous affairs for The Arizona Republic and azcentral. Send ideas and tips to arlyssa.becenti@arizonarepublic.com.

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