Travis County Healtcare Board of Managers, Please Reconsider

Thursday night at the Travis County Commissioners' Court on West 11th Street in downtown Austin, TX the not-elected-but-appointed-by-elected-officials Travis County HEALTHCARE District Board of Managers voted unanimously to use $450,000 of the district's property tax revenue (assessed without recourse to all Travis County property owners) to abort the unborn babies of poor and minority women. Margaret Sanger, who never met a person whom she considered of inferior race whom she didn't want to prevent from reproducing, would be so proud. The Board of Managers should be so ashamed of themselves.

As a result of this decision whether they like it or not, whether they live in Austin or not, whether they believe in the right to life or not, all Travis County Property owners' who pay their property taxes will be funding the killing of the unborn babies of poor and minority women. The Board of Managers made such a decision in the face of overwhelming opposition by the public. Why should the managers care about public opinion, they were not elected to their positions and so do not fear the public.

When unelected boards make life and death public policy decisions that are controversial and opposed by the public such decisions are dictates, not a consensus, not the decisions of a democratic body. Those decisions are therefore of questionable legitimacy. Those decisions should be appealed and litigated, and if there is no recourse they should perhaps be civilly disobeyed, in this case by a taxpayer revolt.

For the sake of decency and respect for the poor and minorities, we at The Travis Monitor urge the Hospital District Board of Managers to reconsider their ill-advised decision made without regard of public opinion.

And one more thing, ABORTION IS NOT HEALTH CARE.

Click here to read the Austin American Statesmen story on the "hearing".