On November 7, 2007 the Oakland (California) City Council voted to approve an ordinance that would require people who try to counsel men and women entering abortion clinics to keep at least eight feet away. A final vote on the ordinance is scheduled for December 4.

For offenders who come closer than 8 feet in order to, say…hand a piece of literature to someone, they face penalties of up to a year in county jail and fines of up to $2,000. The effect of the ordinance is the suppression of efforts to assist women in choosing life over death for their children by abortion. Specifically, apart from the fact that it thwarts efforts to save a child, the ordinance radically interferes with the speech rights of those who advocate for the right to life. So where is the ACLU? Is the violation of speech and expressive activity no longer what the ACLU is about?