This town, halfway between two states, is at the center of America’s abortion debate

The American town of Bristol, with a population of approximately 44,000, is a divided community.

The state line runs between Virginia and Tennessee and actually runs along Main Street. While both sides have a lot in common, there is one major difference — abortion is illegal in Tennessee. That’s been the case since a 2022 Supreme Court ruling gave states, rather than the federal government, the power to legislate abortion, leading 12 states to pass near-total bans.

As a result, the city’s only abortion clinic, Bristol Women’s Health Center, moved less than a mile away and continues to practice legally in Virginia.

But just because abortion is legal in Virginia, that doesn’t mean the abortion fight is over.

“It’s like whack-a-mole,” said Barbara Schwartz, co-founder of the State Line Abortion Access Partnership SLAAP. They help people traveling to Virginia get abortions at the Bristol Women’s Health Clinic.

“As soon as one method doesn’t work, the anti-abortion crowd shows up in Bristol and tries another method.”

Bristol Circuit Court will hear the clinic’s case against an eviction notice issued in April 2024 by landlords brothers Chase and Chadwick King on December 22.

Lawyers for the clinic argued it had the right to renew the lease for another six years. But if a judge rules in favor of the building owner, the clinic will be forced to find a new home.

This isn’t the first time landlords have tried to remove clinics from their properties. The brothers claim the clinic deceptively concealed the fact that they were performing abortions, which they insist is “firmly opposed”. The case was dismissed last September, with Judge Sage Johnson ruling:

“If (landlords) had conducted a simple internet search on their tenants, as any reasonably cautious landlord might do, they would have discovered that the clinic did provide abortion services, as clearly stated on its website.”

Clinic owner Diana Delzis declined to comment at the hearing, having previously said she wanted to keep the clinic in the city even if they were evicted. However, she noted that there are few other suitable facilities in Bristol, Virginia.

Barbara Schwartz, co-founder of SLAAP (State Line Abortion Access Partnership), said the clinic leaving Bristol would be a “blow” to abortion services.

Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, states where abortion is legal have become destinations for out-of-state abortion seekers, with 155,000 people crossing state lines last year, according to the Guttmacher Institute (GI).

The organization also found that more than 9,200 people traveled to Virginia for surgery last year.

“The location in Bristol means the clinic is the closest place for millions of Southerners to have a safe and legal abortion within hours.”

Victoria Cobb, director of anti-abortion lobbyist The Family Foundation, also noted that Bristol’s location puts it “at the heart of the debate”.

Ms Cobb used local bylaws to launch the first of several moves to restrict abortion in Bristol. Anti-abortion activists are using this tactic in states where abortion is legal. The logic is very simple: If you can’t win on Capitol Hill, why not fight in City Hall?

“Local people don’t want to see their town become an abortion destination,” Ms Cobb said. “We’re happy to help them.”

The family foundation has argued in the past that the clinic’s presence violates zoning regulations, which prohibit the building from being used in a manner that could endanger life.

“Why doesn’t this extend to unborn life?” Ms. Cobb asked.

Their order states that no new clinics should be allowed to open in Bristol and expansion of existing clinics should be blocked.

Other parts of the country have adopted similar rules to restrict abortions, including nearby Washington and Russell counties. But Professor Laura Helmer, an expert on US abortion regulations, said these efforts were largely “virtue signaling”.

“I would be surprised if many of these towns had health care services, let alone abortion services,” she said.

Debate in Bristol became heated when Parliament agreed to investigate the matter.

Jay Detrick, the city’s planning director, told the BBC: “It’s more stressful than dealing with car parks. We haven’t really had this happen at a local level before.”

Ultimately, city prosecutors found that imposing restrictions on medical facilities fell outside their purview.

Shortly after the city decided not to intervene, another group decided to try to close the clinic — spearheaded by Texas pastor Mark Lee Dixon.

This pastor lobbied Congresses across the U.S. to mandate Comstock Actis a 152-year-old federal law that prohibits sending or receiving by mail materials that may cause abortion.

Ninety-three local authorities have passed ordinances enforcing the Comstock Act, even closing a Planned Parenthood clinic in Lubbock, Texas.

Rev. Dixon hopes the same result will come from the decree he filed in Bristol. The council has yet to consider the issue, but he remains optimistic.

“The introduction or rejection of such measures by local authorities does not mean that the initiative has failed,” he told the BBC.

SLAAP co-founder Kimberly Smith anticipates more activity. She said anti-abortion campaigners targeted Bristol because of its unusual political makeup:

“They’re here because we’re the red part of a blue state. If they weaken it here, it weakens the whole framework of states’ rights.”

Indeed, Rev Dickson told the BBC that even if the clinic wins its case this week and can stay in place, its opponents will not be deterred.

“As long as the cries of Bristol’s unborn babies are silenced, we will work hard to push the council to fulfill its obligation to protect unborn Bristolians.”