In a landmark decision last week, Planned Parenthood was defunded, which further pushed women’s reproductive rights into a threatening place on the progressive matrix. However, one city has countered the anti-reproductive health culture currently dominating the GOP.
In Missouri, Alderwoman Megan Ellyia Green enacted an ordinance that prohibits reproductive health discrimination. According to the Associated Press, the ordinance bans employers from practicing discriminatory behavior such as “firing, refusing to hire or disciplining women because they have an abortion, take contraception, use artificial insemination or become pregnant out of wedlock.”
Denizens of St. Louis can no longer be subjected to anti-abortion behaviors by current or prospective employers. "I think a lot of advocates believe that those types of bills and that type of language is the future of discrimination," said Green to the AP.
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Green’s decision is a clear preemptive act for the Democrat-dominated city within its Republican-dominated state.
Last year, GOP-led states gave companies the power to deny employment to prospective workers based on their religious objection. However, Missouri killed the measure.
That decision came with a bit of backlash. Peter Karutz, a senior partner at MDD Forensic Accountants firmly objected.
“Businesses are not owned by robots. They're owned by people, and under the Constitution, people have the right to have their own beliefs,” he said. Karutz, is also the president of the St. Louis chapter of an organization for Catholic business leaders.
Both Republicans and religious organizations have been vocal about the Green’s ordinance. "We need to send a clear message: The people of Missouri do not support Abortion Sanctuary Cities,” said Gov. Eric Greitens.
Since 2010 abortion access has been restricted by more than 330 measures, as also noted by the AP. While Green’s decision can ultimately be overridden by the state, the decision sends a powerful message not just to the GOP, but to the people of a blue-dominated city.