Tens of Thousands of Pro-Life Advocates Join Local March for Life Efforts
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 21, 2010
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — The majority of Americans are pro-life on abortion, but not everyone can get to the nation’s capital to show their opposition to abortion in the March for Life. Instead, tens of thousands of pro-life advocates are heading to state capitols and city parks to support the pro-life perspective.
Thousands of pro-life people converged on the Capitol Campus for the annual March for Life on Tuesday in Washington state.
Pro-life people of all ages gathered on the sidewalks across from the Winged Victory monument before cramming together on the Capitol steps at noon. State police officials estimated the crowd at 6,000, an increase from an estimated 4,000 who took part last year.
"You know, if we get the life issue wrong, we get every single other issue wrong," state Rep. Matt Shea told the crowd, according to the Tacoma Daily News.
Thousands of pro-life advocates marched through downtown Little Rock Sunday as Arkansas Right to Life hosted the annual March for Life there.
ARTL spokesman Emmett Guillory "We can talk about healthcare, the economy, troubles in the world, but if we don’t get right the life issue, those quality of life issues don’t matter, so hopefully they’ll come to realize that and become passionate and support the pro life movement."
For the 36th year in a row, a downtown street was filled with people of all ages in Syracuse, New York.
Nearly 200 people took part in the annual March for Life, stopping traffic as they walked along Jefferson Street from Armory Square to Columbus Circle.
A woman carried a sign reading, “Adoption, not Abortion.” A young girl held up a handwritten sign: “Every life is a blessing.” Many carried a rose or a picture of one, as the symbol of life.
Local media indicated Margaret Driscoll-Cheah, a local lawyer and author of “Saving Women and Infants from Abortion,” spoke about her 8½ years as a counselor outside a New York City abortion center.
“For those 8½ years, I knew I was standing on holy ground,” she said. “If you’ve ever been in a room where someone is being born or someone is dying, you know that God is present.”
Now, she represents women who are suing abortion businesses for botched abortions.
As many as 10,000 gathered for the March for Life in downtown Dallas.
Bishop Kevin Farrell of the Diocese of Dallas noted that the Supreme Court case that allowed abortions has its roots in Dallas. He called for local opponents to stay vigilant in praying and working for Roe vs. Wade to be overturned.
"We must never give up," he said.
Last year’s crowd was estimated at 5,000, and Farrell issued a challenge then that the number be doubled this year and that appeared to be the case.
Georgia Right to Life is calling for those children to be remembered through their Together for Life Memorial Service and Silent Walk. This is Georgia’s largest annual pro-life gathering. It is being held on the steps of the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta.
The memorial service, sponsored by Georgia Right to Life begins at 11:30 AM and is followed by a one-mile long silent, peaceful walk through downtown Atlanta.
The featured speakers at this year’s service are Ken Blackwell, former Secretary of State of Ohio and Archbishop Wilton Gregory, of the Archdiocese of Atlanta.
Blackwell noted, "Abortion is not a wedge issue at all. It is a bridge issue between the parties, between religious and ethnic groups."
And recent events in late 2009 and in January should bring increased numbers to the 35th annual Nebraska Walk for Life to be held in Lincoln on Saturday, January 30th. The Walk, sponsored by Nebraska Right to Life, will start at 10:00 a.m. on the West side of the State Capitol and will proceed to the Student Union at the University of Nebraska downtown campus.
"Our speaker’s message will resonate with pro-life Nebraskans in the wake of two disappointing actions by elected officials; Regent Jim McClurg and Senator Ben Nelson." said Julie Schmit-Albin, Nebraska Right to Life director.
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