On Thursday, September 25th, the City Council of Avery, Texas (pop. 462) became the 83rd city in the nation, and the 66th city in the State of Texas, to pass a Sanctuary City for the Unborn Ordinance. The “Ordinance Outlawing Abortion, declaring Avery a Sanctuary City for the Unborn” passed in a 4-0-1 vote. The City of Avery, located on U.S. Hwy 82 between the cities of Annona (pop. 288) and De Kalb (pop. 1,769), is the second city in Red River County to adopt a Sanctuary for the Unborn Ordinance. Avery is also the 13th city and the 17th political subdivision to pass such a measure in 2025.
After the vote, Red River Republican Chairman Cebron O’Bier shared, “Tonight is a milestone in Red River County as the Avery City Council approved an ordinance making Avery the second city in the county to become a Sanctuary City for the Unborn. Mayor Alex Ackley and the council recognized the importance of protecting both pregnant women and their unborn children from the violence of abortion. For me, this moment is personal. Avery is my hometown, and seeing our community take this step fills me with gratitude and pride. Tonight, Avery’s name will be remembered in a very special way.” The Avery Sanctuary City for the Unborn Ordinance puts into place six provisions.
Get the latest pro-life news and information on X (Twitter). Follow @LifeNewsHQ
These provisions prohibit: (1) performing an elective abortion and aiding or abetting elective abortions within the city limits of Avery, (2) elective abortions on residents of Avery – regardless of where the abortion takes place, (3) abortion trafficking through the City of Avery, (4) the mailing of abortion-inducing drugs into the City of Avery, (5) criminal organizations from doing business inside the city limits of Avery, and (6) the transportation and disposal of the remains of unborn children who have been killed by an elective abortion across state lines and carried by waste management companies into Texas in and through the City of Avery.
Avery’s Sanctuary City for the Unborn Ordinance is enforced the same way the Texas Heartbeat Act is enforced, through a private enforcement mechanism. The ordinance states, “Any person, other than the city of Avery, and any officer or employee of the city, has standing to bring and may bring a civil action against any person or entity that: violates any provision” of this ordinance. The ordinance has a six-year statute of limitations. Avery’s Ordinance is clear that “a civil action … may not be brought: against the woman upon whom the abortion was performed or induced or attempted to be performed or induced in violation of this ordinance, or against a pregnant woman who intends or seeks to abort her unborn child in violation of this ordinance.”
In addition to providing protections for pregnant mothers and their unborn children, the ordinance also educates members of the community on the Thriving Texas Families Program and the resources that can be obtained through centers listed on the Texas Pregnancy Care Network website at www.texaspregnancy.org and The Pregnancy Network website operated by Human Coalition at www.thepregnancynetwork.clinic
The City of Avery received a letter from Attorney Jonathan F. Mitchell, committing to represent the City of Avery at no cost to the city or taxpayers for any litigation that may arise from the passage of their ordinance further outlawing abortion and abortion trafficking.
Other cities in Red River County which could follow the cities of Annona (pop. 288) and Avery (pop. 462) in becoming Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn include: Deport (pop. 578), Detroit (pop. 776), Bogata (pop.1,153), and Clarksville (pop. 3,285). Residents in cities and counties across the nation who are interested in seeing their local government pass an enforceable ordinance are encouraged to sign the online petition from the Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn Initiative.
LifeNews Note: Mark Lee Dickson lives in Texas and is the founder of the Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn Initiative.
