The Nashville Metro City Council cut funding from police and health programs Tuesday to create a new $500,000 grant for the billion-dollar abortion chain Planned Parenthood.
The Nashville Tennessean reports the council approved the grant in a 19-13 vote with three abstentions, despite concerns about potential job cuts and tax dollars being used to support killing unborn babies in abortions.
The half-million dollar grant will be used to expand sex education, distribute “safer sex supply kits,” provide family planning counseling and birth control to Nashville-area residents, according to the report.
Although the council removed a section that would have allowed funding for women to travel out of state for abortions, several members said the grant is their response to the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in June. Their actions also made it clear that abortions are a top priority for them – more so than funding for public safety or essential health programs.
“We’ve got an unprecedented removal of a constitutional right that’s been in existence for 50 years,” council member Bob Mendes said. “We’ve got Congress that won’t act to protect them. We’ve got a state that’s fully outlawed [abortion], and the fact is that our local governments everywhere in America are on the frontlines of trying to preserve maximum protection for women.”
The council cut funding from the police, health services, transportation, the library and other programs to fund the new grant to Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider, according to the report.
ACTION ALERT: Contact Nashville Metro City Council members and let them know your opposition to the grant.
In August, city leaders warned the council that there is not enough money in the budget for the new grant, and they may have to cut staffing positions and delay other projects to fund it.
Several council members brought up those concerns at the meeting Tuesday and asked for a delay on the vote, “preferring more time to discuss how Metro’s health department could be better funded to provide those services. The department already provides an array of family planning services with costs on a sliding scale depending on client income,” the Tennessean noted. However, the council passed the grant anyway.
“It sadly comes as no surprise that Metro Nashville would prioritize funding for abortions over essential items such as education and transportation,” Will Brewer, legal counsel and director of government relations for Tennessee Right to Life, told LifeNews in August.
Brewer said the council also turned away millions of dollars in tourism revenue over the summer “just to spite the Republican Party and turn away its presidential convention.”
Stacy Dunn, president of Tennessee Right to Life, said the council members have a duty to protect the most vulnerable citizens in Nashville.
“Council members would better serve the people of Nashville by working to create a safe environment for all citizens, including unborn children and their mothers,” she said.
Tennessee is one of 15 states that protects unborn babies by banning abortions now that Roe v. Wade is gone. The pro-life law was a major victory, but Dunn said pro-life advocates’ work is not over. They will continue to work to pass legislation to protect babies in the womb and support families in need through the nearly 200 pregnancy resource centers and other charities across the state.
“And we will continue to educate the citizens of our state about the precious gift of life in all its ages, stages and conditions,” she said. “Our goal is not only to make abortion illegal but to make it unthinkable.”
ACTION ALERT: Contact Nashville Metro City Council members and let them know your opposition to the grant.