Hundreds of Thousands of Pro-Life Students to Silently Protest Abortion Tuesday
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
October 20, 2008
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — As many as 200,000 pro-life students at 4,000 schools in 22 countries plan to take part in the fifth annual Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity on Tuesday. Sponsored by the pro-life group Stand True, the event has awakened the consciences of millions of teenagers and college students to the reality of abortion.
Bryan Kemper, president of the group, tells LifeNews.com that students in the U.S. and other nations will hear a clear pro-life message even though thousands of pro-life students will take a vow of silence to speak up for unborn children.
The students will wear red tape over their mouths or red armbands to show their support for protecting women and children from abortion.
"The students are speaking loud and clear, they want an end to legalized child killing," he said. "We are getting thousands of e-mails, comments and Internet messages from students thanking us for giving them a peaceful way to stand up and be counted."
"Thousands of American babies are permanently silenced every day by the violent act of abortion," Kemper says. "This day is in honor of those children, and we will stay silent as an act of solidarity with these innocent victims."
Kemper says he’s often amazed at the personal sacrifices pro-life students will make to send a message and help their classmates — many of whom are grappling with an upcoming or past abortion decision.
"I got one girl to not get an abortion because I took a ZERO in class for this and she started crying," one student who participated in a previous Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity said.
"She pulled me into the bathroom and told me she was pregnant and was going to have an abortion and she said because of how much this meant to me she didn’t! We both sat in the bathroom and cried for a few minutes and she put the baby up for adoption," the student explained.
Another student wanted to get involved in the annual event because of the regret of a mother’s past abortion.
"My mom had two abortions before me and she suffers from the emotional scars every day," the student said. "I always wondered what it would be like to have an older brother or sister and I’ll never know."
Students will also distribute pro-life fliers where they can and home-schooled students will also participate in the event by visiting local malls and other public areas to distribute literature.
Over the past few years many schools have tried to stop students from participating and quash their First Amendment rights. Every year, attorneys from the Alliance Defense Fund defend these students and file lawsuits to protect their rights.
In one case, a Michigan student is still fighting for his rights after his Middle School prevented him from participating fully.
The event has earned the support of other pro-life organizations, including Students for Life of America, the national organization for pro-life college students.
"Thousands of American babies are permanently silenced every day by the violent act of abortion," SFLA director Kristan Hawkins told LifeNews.com. "This is a day for pro-life students to honor those children as they stay silent as an act of solidarity with these innocent victims."
Related web sites:
Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity – https://www.silentday.org
Stand True – https://www.standtrue.com
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