As the crowd got moving, my 19-year-old son Joe and I worked our way to the front of the line so that we would be among the first to finish the march.
Upon reaching the end on Capitol Hill, we turned around and saw a wonderful sight: As far as we could see down Constitution Avenue, there was a sea of people marching for life!
From all over the United States we came — children, high-school and college students, women and men from all walks of life — to witness in solidarity to the humanity of the unborn and the evil of abortion.
Since the Supreme Court’s Jan. 22, 1973 dual decisions that effectively legalized abortion on demand — throughout the entire nine months of pregnancy — more than 52 million unborn babies have been brutally murdered in the United States.
Marching for the unborn — in the nation’s capitol, in the Walk for Life West Coast and in various state capitols — is an important annual event.
But marching once a year is simply not enough! We must keep marching all year long!
In order to end abortion and protect all vulnerable people within our lifetime, it’s going to take a lot more prayer and effort than most of us have been willing to give thus far.
Building a strong foundation on Catholic social teaching is very important. An excellent place to start is reading Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life).
Also, consider visiting the U.S. Catholic bishop’’ website at www.usccb.org and click "life issues" and "social justice issues." Priests for Life is another fine educational pro-life source.
And please remember that it is vitally important to stay politically involved throughout the entire year. Make it a point to contact the New York State Catholic Conference and sign up to receive their legislative action alerts.
Three very significant pro-life bills — supported by the U.S. bishops — have been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. Please phone (Capitol switchboard: 202-224-3121) and write or e-mail your congressional representative urging her or him to support and cosponsor the:
And seriously consider forming a parish or interparish group to regularly stand in solidarity with our vulnerable unborn brothers and sisters — praying and witnessing to their humanity — at the nearest abortion mill. Contact your diocesan respect life office for assistance.
In the shadow of the U.S. Capitol back in 1979, 700,000 of us heard Pope John Paul II boldly proclaim: "We will stand up every time that human life is threatened. When the sacredness of life before birth is attacked, we will stand up and proclaim that no one ever has the authority to destroy unborn life!"
Remain standing and keep marching!
Magliano is a columnist for Catholic News Service.
