Los Angeles, CA – Senator Alex Padilla, native Angeleno and the first Latino U.S. Senator from California, joined a broad coalition of health care advocates, providers, and prominent elected officials in the San Fernando Valley’s historic Latino community to urge voters in his hometown to protect reproductive health care freedoms in California by voting YES on Proposition 1.
Kicking off the event, Senator Padilla said, “Protecting the fundamental right to an abortion by passing Proposition 1 is critical to the health and wellbeing of our Latino communities in Los Angeles and across California,” said Senator Alex Padilla. “Proposition 1 will just not protect the fundamental reproductive freedoms of millions of Californians—it will also protect the reproductive freedoms of Americans across the nation who will be able to travel here from states with abortion bans in place, and it will act as our first line of defense against a national abortion ban. I hope every Californian will join me in voting YES on Proposition 1.”
Proposition 1 would explicitly add the right to abortion, and the right to choose or refuse contraceptives, into the California Constitution.
“Abortion is health care, and all health care decisions should be made solely between an individual and their doctor — a medical expert who is equipped to help patients make the most informed decision about their health,” said Celinda M. Vázquez, Chief External Affairs Officer, Planned Parenthood Los Angeles (PPLA). “Los Angeles, and California, must always be a place where our essential freedoms are protected. That’s why Planned Parenthood Los Angeles is proud to support YES on Proposition 1, to protect access to abortion for generations to come.”
“A person’s decisions about their reproductive health care should be made between them and their healthcare provider – not by politicians or governments,” said Laura Jimenez, Executive Director of California Latinas 4 Reproductive Justice. “Our organization is proud to lead the fight in California to protect and expand the rights of Latinas/xs to self-determination in reproductive health care, and beyond. Proposition 1 will make sure every person has the fundamental right to control their own body, and we urge all Californians to vote YES.
