Should bubble zones shield folks from protesters at clinics, schools, churches?

What is a bubble zone? Areas where you can't approach someone entering a healthcare clinic, school or house of worship.

How close can a protester come to someone entering a medical clinic for an abortion?

That is a key question embedded in a “bubble zone” ordinance proposed by Los Angeles County Third District Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, set to be heard at the Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 6.

The board motion asks the county counsel to draw up a draft ordinance establishing a “bubble zone” that “protects individuals” entering or leaving hospitals, medical clinics, schools or places of worship from unwanted interactions with protesters who are trying to share their opposing point of view or offer counseling.

An ordinance would make it a misdemeanor crime for anyone who obstructs or blocks another person from entering or exiting. It would also prevent anyone from getting within eight feet of someone who is handing out leaflets; displaying signs; orally protesting, educating or counseling someone — unless the person consents.

The eight-foot rule would be put in effect within a radius of 100 feet from the entrance to these kinds of places.

Although the motion does not mention abortion, most ordinances in the United States that determine where protesters can stand have been in relation to demonstrations from protest groups both for and against abortion rights. Those demonstrations often occur at clinics that provide abortion and other reproductive care and they  intensified after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to an abortion in June 2022 by reversing Roe v Wade.  

“The exercise of a person’s right to protest must be balanced against another person’s right to access and obtain healthcare services, access education, and exercise their freedom to worship in a safe and unobstructed manner,” read the motion.

The proposed ordinance is based on a state of Colorado law passed in 1993 that has withstood several court challenges, said Horvath.

But a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision is seen as weakening bubble zone laws, said Ken Paulson, First Amendment lawyer and director of the Free Speech Center based at Middle Tennessee State University.

“The next buffer zone case to get to the U.S. Supreme Court will face extraordinary scrutiny as to whether it limits free speech,” Paulson said on Friday, Aug. 2. “There is a strong sense that the more conservative majority Supreme Court will be less tolerant of buffer zones than it has in the past.”

Horvath said the proposed ordinance is needed to protect people. She pointed out several cases of vandalism at Planned Parenthood facilities, specifically in Pomona and East Los Angeles. The group supports access to women’s reproductive care, including abortions, and some facilities offer abortion services.

She said the county has declared itself an abortion-safe county and now must back that up.

She also cited a protest at a library in San Fernando over a program involving a drag queen in which people blocked entrances with their bodies.

She said she believes the buffer zone law would still allow for freedom of expression, and she argues that it will also protect people’s rights to freely obtain healthcare, to worship without worry of being attacked, and to enter an LGBTQ+ center without fearing violence.

“What we have concerns about are people feeling physically unsafe as human beings when accessing things that are fundamental to their existence and their community,” Horvath said on Friday, Aug. 2.

She said her office has received calls from the Jewish community who are fearful when attending services at local synagogues on Friday and Saturday evenings. She also said there’s been an increase in Islamophobic violent incidents.

“We wanted to narrow in on places we know are protected under the Constitution,” said Horvath.