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LGBTQ and reproductive‑rights advocates warn Philadelphia to shore up protections and services amid federal rollbacks
Summary
The ACLU and women’s‑rights attorneys told the council the city must enforce nondiscrimination protections, protect gender‑affirming care locally and pursue state reforms to preserve reproductive access.
National and local civil‑liberties groups told the committee that recent federal executive orders threaten LGBTQ+ protections and reproductive access and urged Philadelphia to reinforce local enforcement and services.
Harper Seldon, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s LGBTQ and HIV Project, said the ACLU expects attacks on transgender rights and health care to be pursued at the federal level and noted a recent spike in state‑level anti‑LGBTQ bills nationwide. "The goal of these attacks is to remove transgender people from all walks of public and civic life," Seldon said, and urged local government to fund services and robustly enforce nondiscrimination ordinances.
Evelyn Mangold of the Women’s Law Project described Pennsylvania’s current abortion restrictions — including waiting‑period and parental consent laws and a statutory ban on Medicaid coverage for abortion — and said those limits disproportionately affect low‑income people and young people. Mangold noted a recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision that strengthened the Pennsylvania Equal Rights Amendment and said the organization will challenge the state ban on Medicaid coverage next month in Commonwealth Court.
City witnesses and advocates emphasized local steps the city can take: fund community organizations that provide health care and housing, protect sensitive health data, expand language access, and support legal and social services for people seeking gender‑affirming care or reproductive health care. Several public commenters urged the city to affirm that gender‑affirming care will continue to be provided in Philadelphia even if federal policy changes.
No council action was taken at the hearing; advocates asked the city to prioritize enforcement of existing nondiscrimination ordinances and to work with state legislators to remove Pennsylvania’s abortion restrictions.
