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IN THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN LEANDRO <br /> <br />RESOLUTION NO. 2022- <br /> <br />RESOLUTION OF THE SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL OPPOSING THE RECENT <br />SUPREME COURT DECISION TO OVERTURN ROE V. WADE AND <br />DECLARING ITS SUPPORT FOR A WOMEN’S RIGHT TO CHOOSE <br /> <br />WHEREAS, Roe v. Wade was a landmark legal decision issued on January 22, 1973, in which <br />the United States Supreme Court struck down a Texas statute banning abortion, effectively legalizing the <br />procedure across the nation; and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, the court held that a woman’s right to an abortion was implicit in the right to <br />privacy protected by the 14th Amendment to the Constitution; and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, through its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the <br />Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022, holding that there was no longer a federal <br />constitutional right to an abortion, thereby causing great turmoil regarding the legal status of abortion in <br />many parts of the country; and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, the San Leandro City Council opposes this decision and supports reproductive <br />freedom and access – including the choice of when and whether to have children; and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, access to reproductive health care is foundational to personal autonomy, dignity, <br />and the ability to participate fully in economic, social, and civic life; and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, abortion is a safe medical intervention that roughly one in four women have had <br />in their lifetime;i and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and other prominent <br />medical organizations determined that abortion bans will harm, rather than improve, patient health;ii and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, a large body of other peer-reviewed research consistently documents the safety of <br />abortions and the lasting harms created when pregnant people are denied abortion care, including harms <br />to mental and physical health, family, and finances; and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, abortion bans disproportionately impact persons of color and lower-income <br />patients, with up to 75% of those seeking abortion care living at or below 200% of the federal poverty <br />level, and the majority identifying as Black, Hispanic, Asian, or Pacific Islander;iii and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, forcing patients to continue unwanted pregnancies subjects them to complications <br />and a risk of death that is 14-times higher than abortion;iv and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, research shows that persons denied a wanted abortion are less financially secure in <br />subsequent years than those who received an abortion, and being denied an abortion increases the <br />chances that a person’s existing children live in poverty v. <br /> <br />NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the Mayor and City Council of the City of San <br />Leandro do hereby oppose the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and affirm their support <br />of the rights of those in San Leandro and throughout the United States to maintain control over their own <br />private medical decisions and to obtain access to the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare, including <br />abortion care, without discrimination. <br />