March for Life (Washington, D.C.)


The March for Life is an annual rally and march protesting both the practice and legality of abortion, held in Washington, D.C. on or around the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, a decision issued in 1973 by the United States Supreme Court legalizing abortion nationwide. The march, whose stated mission is to "End abortion by uniting, educating, and mobilizing pro-life people in the public square", advocates for overturning Roe v. Wade. It is organized by the March for Life Education and Defense Fund.

History

The first March for Life, which was founded by Nellie Gray, was held on January 22, 1974, on the West Steps of the Capitol, with an estimated 20,000 supporters in attendance. The march was originally intended to be a one-time event, in hopes that the United States Supreme Court would reverse Roe v. Wade immediately a year after its ruling. However, after the first march in 1974, Gray took steps to institute the rally as a yearly event until Roe v. Wade was overturned by incorporating more grassroots anti-abortion activists into the march, which would be officially recognized as a nonprofit organization the same year.
During the 33rd annual March for Life in 2006, the nomination of Judge Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court caused a major shift for the movement, because of the expectation that Alito would "win Senate approval and join a majority in overturning Roe."
During the 2009 March for Life, the potential passage of the 110th United States Congress of the Freedom of Choice Act—a bill that would "codify Roe v. Wade" by declaring a fundamental right to abortion and lifting many restrictions on abortion—served as a key rallying point.

Itinerary

The March for Life proceedings begin around noon. They typically consist of a rally at the National Mall near Fourth Street. It is followed by a march which travels down Constitution Avenue NW, turns right at First Street NE, and then ends on the steps of the Supreme Court of the United States, where another rally is held. Many protesters start the day by delivering roses and lobbying members of Congress.

Attendance

In 1987, it is estimated that 10,000 participated.
In 1995, which is the last year that the National Park Service made an official estimate of attendance, 45,000 attended.
Between 2003 and 2012 the marches drew crowds estimated in the hundreds of thousands. According to organizers, the 2011 event was attended by 400,000. In 2013, Life advocates estimated the march drew 650,000. As with all large crowd estimates, the generated number of attendees reported differ, with some sources indicating a figure in the tens of thousands to low six figures.
In 2016, the march proceeded despite a blizzard that dropped of snow in D.C., with thousands of attendees.
Many teenagers and college students attend the march each year, typically traveling with Catholic schools, churches, and youth groups. A columnist for The Washington Post estimated that about half of the marchers were under age 30 in 2010.

Notable speakers

1987

In 1987, Ronald Reagan spoke remotely via telephone, and vowed to help "end this national tragedy". Jesse Helms, then Senator of North Carolina, attended and spoke. He called abortion an "American holocaust".

2003–2009

In 2003, George W. Bush spoke remotely via telephone and thanked participants for their "devotion to such a noble cause". During his telephone addresses, he tended to speak broadly of opposing abortion as opposed to offering any specific efforts being made to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision.
In 2003, speakers included Representative Chris Smith, Republican of New Jersey, and Randall Terry, the founder of Operation Rescue. In his speech, Terry encouraged the youth in the audience, calling them to "fight for all you're worth."
In 2004, 15 lawmakers spoke. Among the lawmakers who spoke were Representatives Todd Tiahrt of Kansas, and Patrick J. Toomey of Pennsylvania. Tiahrt, who also spoke at the 30th annual march, urged marchers to "help pro-lifers in your state"; Toomey supported these remarks, saying to vote for anti-abortion candidates in order to reclaim the Senate and, in turn, the courts.
In 2006, Representative Steve Chabot, an Ohio Republican and prominent anti-abortion advocate in the United States House of Representatives, spoke to the masses on overturning Roe v. Wade. Nellie Gray, the founder of March for Life, also spoke.
In 2009, approximately 20 Congress members spoke, including Representative F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr., Wisconsin Republican and former chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Gray.

2011–2019

In 2011, speakers included House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, and several other members of Congress, including Mike Pence.
In 2013, presenters included Speaker of the United States House of Representatives John Boehner, former United States Senator and candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination Rick Santorum, as well as other members of Congress.
In 2016, Republican Presidential candidate Carly Fiorina took part in the march.
In 2017, the march included Vice President Mike Pence, Kellyanne Conway, the Counselor to President Donald Trump, the Archbishop of New York, Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, anti-abortion activist Abby Johnson, and NFL player Benjamin Watson. Vice President Pence attended and spoke at the march, becoming the first vice president and the highest-ranking official to do so. Pence was also one of the speakers at the 2010 march while serving as representative of Indiana’s 6th congressional district.
In 2018, President Donald Trump addressed the 45th march via satellite from the White House Rose Garden, becoming the first US President to address the rally using this technology. The march, on the other hand, was attended by US House Speaker Paul Ryan, Democratic Illinois Representative Dan Lipinski, former NFL center Matt Birk, and former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow's mother Pam.
In 2019, Trump addressed the crowd via satellite and Pence spoke at the event in person. The President said, "I will always defend the first right in our Declaration of Independence: the right to life." Political commentator Ben Shapiro also spoke at the event. After the March, a widely discussed incident happened, when a group of March for Life participants and participants of the Indigenous Peoples March confronted each other.

2020

On January 24, 2020, President Trump was the first American president to attend and speak at the March for Life.

Associated events

Various anti-abortion organizations hold events before and after the March. Such events include a Luau for Life at Georgetown University and a candlelight vigil at the Supreme Court. Additionally, independent films with an anti-abortion message have premiered or have been promoted in association with the March, including the Vatican endorsed film Doonby, which was shown at Landmark E Street Cinema during the 2013 march, and 22 Weeks, which premiered at Union Station's Phoenix Theatre on the eve of the 2009 march.

Anglican events

, the anti-abortion apostolate of the Anglican Church in North America, launched the "Mobilizing the Church for Life" conference on the day before the 2016 March for Life. On the following day, the primate of the Anglican Church in North America, Foley Beach, led Anglicans in the March for Life.

Catholic events

In 2009, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Pietro Sambri, read Pope Benedict XVI's message, which told attendants that he was "deeply grateful" for the youths' "outstanding annual witness for the gospel of life". In 2008, the Pope's message thanked attendants for "promoting respect for the dignity and inalienable rights of every human being." In 2011, an event parallel to the Verizon Center event was held at the D.C. Armory; a total of over 27,000 young people attended the events.
In 2013, a Morning Mass and Rally was added and held at the Patriot Center on the campus of George Mason University, including Arlington Bishop Paul Loverde, Richmond Bishop Francis DiLorenzo and more than 100 other bishops and priests from across the nation. Life is VERY Good, which began with 350 participants in 2009, gathered in excess of 12,000 between its two events, held before and after the March, in 2013.

Evangelical events

At the 2016 March for Life rally, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, organized a conference "aimed at increasing the level of engagement in the pro-life cause".
The Taskforce of United Methodists on Abortion and Sexuality, which is a part of the National Pro-Life Religious Council, holds its annual service of worship at the United Methodist Building, and the liturgy held for the 2016 March of Life featured "a sermon by Dr. Thomas C. Oden, General Editor of the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, former Professor of Theology and Ethics at Drew University, and Lifewatch Advisory Board member."

Lutheran events

Before the 2016 March for Life, a Divine Service was celebrated at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Alexandria, Virginia.

Virtual March for Life

In 2010, Americans United for Life launched an online virtual March. Anti-abortionists unable to attend the event in person could create avatars of themselves and take part in a virtual demonstration on a Google Maps version of the National Mall. The online event attracted approximately 75,000 participants.

Media attention

Compared to other events, the March for Life has received relatively little media attention over the years.
The 2017 Women's March in Washington, D.C. was used to illustrate the lack of media coverage for the March for Life generally receives. A study by the Media Research Center, the 2017 Women's March received 129 times more coverage on major television networks ABC, CBS, and NBC during their morning and evening newscasts. The 2017 Women's March received 75 minutes of coverage between the networks while the March for Life received just 35 seconds. The 2019 Women's March similarly received 14 minutes 26 seconds of news coverage, while the March for Life the day before only received 54 seconds. The New York Times countered this argument stating, "There is widespread resentment in the anti-abortion movement that the media has not devoted much coverage to the March for Life in the past, perhaps because it happens every year."
To counter the relative lack of media coverage, one of the March for Life's supporters, the Family Research Council, organized a "Blogs for Life" conference in Washington, D.C. The main goal of the conference was to "bring pro-life bloggers together to talk over strategies" for securing more effective media coverage and advancing pro-life issues. Such strategies include securing media coverage through legislative means or by tapping into new media outlets.
EWTN, a Catholic radio and television network, has covered the march extensively in past years.