FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Sept. 20, 2024
Media Contact: Nicole Guzman
Digital Media Coordinator
nicole@colorlatina.org
DENVER, CO- Anti-abortion extremists in Pueblo are preparing to push for another municipal abortion ban. These efforts are harmful to our community and against state law, all while wasting taxpayer resources. At Monday’s City Council meeting, Councillor Regina Maestri hinted at plans to propose a resolution aimed at a women’s health clinic in the city. This move could come as early as the next City Council work session on September 23rd at 5:30 PM. These efforts have been backed by the white Christian nationalist organization Forging Pueblo.
“In our community, religion is an entryway to Reproductive Justice, not an obstacle,” asserts Isabela Rosales, Faith-Aware Community Organizing Manager at the Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR). “My faith tells me that everyone deserves the freedom and respect to access the full span of medical services that are right for them and their families, including access to abortion care.”
Coloradans’ value is the right to access comprehensive reproductive health care. In 2022, COLOR helped pass the Reproductive Health Equity Act (RHEA), which states that everyone has the fundamental right to use or refuse contraception, and every pregnant person has the right to either continue their pregnancy or have an abortion. Local bans attempting to restrict this right contradict state law, costing taxpayer money to be recklessly spent on legislative and legal proceedings.
“Latinos across Colorado believe in protecting and expanding access to abortion care without government interference,” states Dusti Gurule, President and CEO of COLOR. “Our communities would be disproportionately impacted by the restrictions on reproductive health care in the proposed Pueblo resolution. As the co-chair of the Coloradans for Protecting Reproductive Freedom campaign, voting YES on Amendment 79 in November is vital to ensure our state continues to honor the right of all Coloradans to make their own decisions about their reproductive health and ensure protected access to abortion care.”
###
Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR) is a community-rooted nonprofit organization that works to enable Latine individuals and their families to lead safe, healthy, and self-determined lives.
