by Jim Mancari

For 40 years, the cries of unborn children lost to abortion have been heard at the annual March for Life held in Washington, D.C.

At this year’s march on Jan. 25, an estimated 500,000 anti-abortion advocates – the largest crowd in march history – traversed up Constitution Ave. through the snow to the Supreme Court. Protesters held signs and yelled chants in an attempt to raise awareness to the slaughter of babies in the womb. The March for Life Education and Defense Fund boasts that the annual march is the largest human rights demonstration in the world.

Catherine Woesthoff, a parishioner at Holy Family, Flushing, did not let the cold weather stop her as she marched in the 40th annual March for Life Jan. 25 in Washington, D.C. She’s posing with the official Diocese of Brooklyn sign for the march. (Photo by Jim Mancari)

Normally held on Jan. 22 – the actual anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade, which lifted legal protections for the unborn – this year’s march was moved back three days to accommodate for President Barack Obama’s inauguration. Jan. 25 marks the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul.

“One of the reasons for going is to hope that we can convert other people, the world actually, to protect the unborn,” said second-time marcher Deacon Lamont Blake from Christ the King, Springfield Gardens. “I think we kind of accomplished that. Yes, it’s been 40 years, but we have to continue to keep that movement going.”

Since the 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade, more than 55 million abortions have been performed in the U.S. That figure surpasses the entire population of England.

“The argument that it’s a woman choice and that it’s not a human being, that really doesn’t cut it with me anymore,” said first-time marcher Victor Torro, a parishioner at Sacred Heart parish, Bayside. “Even science has proven that life begins at conception. We’re literally talking about the killing of innocent children.”

The Diocese of Brooklyn was well represented at the march. More than 800 people from Brooklyn and Queens boarded 16 buses – eight from individual parishes and eight sponsored by the DeSales Media Group, parent company of The Tablet – heading to Washington. The diocese sent more people to the march than any other diocese in the state, and it was the largest pilgrimage ever from the diocese to Washington.

“It was much appreciated,” said Cathy Donohoe, president of Bridge to Life in Flushing who went on the first-ever March for Life and has since been to 15 straight. “We’re a close diocese, and I would like to see every pastor in every parish speak about it.”

While scores of young people were full of energy and excitement, the march is intended to serve as a somber occasion commemorating the lives of those lost to abortion. This year’s march carried additional sadness, since it was the first without its founder Nellie Gray, who passed away last August at the age of 88.

Fontbonne Hall Academy seniors Enza Agliata, Michele Cipriano, Rosalia LoVerde, Caroline Walkuski, and Cathleen Giordano, and juniors Dianna Marie Mikelis and Patricia Barakakos, all members of Fontbonne Hall’s Friends for Life, headed for Washington, D.C. on January 25, one of the coldest days of the new year, to participate in the 40th March for Life.  The students were accompanied by their moderators Ms. Breeda Connolly, chairperson of the Social Studies Department, and Ms. Donna Russo, member of the Religious Studies Department.

The first-ever March for Life was held on Jan. 22, 1974, the one-year anniversary of Roe v. Wade. About 20,000 people attended that March, but Gray oversaw the exponential growth of the movement.

“She (Gray) was one woman who stood up 39 years ago at the first anniversary of Roe v. Wade,” said Delia Mannix, a parishioner at St. Luke’s in Whitestone who marched for the 10th time this year. “As small as it was to begin with, the power of a woman of faith said that we have to protest and we have to object to it. The impact of one person showed how it’s expanded all over the country and all over the globe.”

After Gray’s passing, Jeanne Monahan, president, and Patrick Kelly, chairman of the board, took over as the march’s new leaders. They led the pre-march rally on the National Mall.

Monahan noted that the 55 million abortions in the past 40 years have wiped out one-sixth of the nation’s would-be population. However, she said that pro-life has become the “new normal” in the country as 50 percent of Americans identified themselves as pro-life in 2012, while a record-low 41 percent identified as pro-choice.

Monahan also stated that the movement is winning among young people. An estimated 80 percent of the participants in the march were under age 30.

Parishioners from Holy Family parish, Flushing at the March for Life.

Statement of Self-Survival

“The young people have been born in a time when abortion is legalized,” said second-time marcher Father Darrell DaCosta, pastor at St. Paul the Apostle, Corona. “It’s really a statement of self-survival because the chances are statistically high that they may not have made it out of the womb because of the legalization of abortion.”

The parish youth group from St. Bartholomew’s, Elmhurst, made the trip to Washington to support the cause.

“These kids are constantly told that life is not important, that abortion is completely normal,” said Sister Tatiana Ramirez, P.C.M., director of the youth group. “Yet no one is telling them to stand up for these kids that are being lost to abortion.”

“From conception, it’s already life,” said Kimberly Ortiz, a member of the youth group and a student at Francis Lewis H.S., Fresh Meadows. “It’s important that we continue this march and this representation of the unborn and their rights.”

Other speakers at the rally included Congressman Christopher Smith (R-N.J.) and Cardinal Sean O’Malley, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities.

Congressman Smith referred to President Obama’s inauguration speech when the latter spoke about caring for the vulnerable and keeping all children safe from harm. That should include the unborn children and their mothers, Rep. Smith said.

Cardinal O’Malley read a tweet from Pope Benedict XVI: “I join all those marching for life from afar, and pray that political leaders will protect the unborn and promote a culture of life.”

Young parishioners from St. Sebastian’s parish in Woodside proudly display their banner during the 2013 March for Life. (Photo by Jim Mancari)

Despite the lack of widespread coverage of the event, many believe the march is still an effective tool to spread the anti-abortion message.

“The problem is that the major media ignores (the march), just like they want to ignore the issue,” said Jim McCloskey, former president of Queens County Respect Life who has marched nearly a dozen times. “For the movement itself, (the march) serves its purpose. In that respect, it’s great that you can produce that many people which can affect the political equation.”

While the March for Life fund reports that abortion numbers have steadily declined since 1990, the organization will continue the march in hopes that lawmakers will not be able to ignore the outpouring of support.

“I believe in life; life is real,” said first-time marcher Doris Buczek, a parishioner at Holy Child Jesus, Richmond Hill. “For these babies that we’ve lost all through the years, they could be living in a beautiful world if things were different.”

(Photo credit Catholic News Service)

NET TV, in association with Riverhorse Entertainment, traveled to the March for Life in Washington, D.C., to sponsor free screenings of the Vatican-endorsed film, “Doonby.” Actors from the film, Jenn Gotzon and Joe Estevez, pictured above, attended the screenings and rally. Though the film doesn’t consider itself a pro-life movie, it offers a strong argument to the fragile and delicate nature of preserving every human life. Two screenings were sponsored by NET TV. The first was held on the eve of the march at the E. Street Cinema, while a second, more intimate screening took place the day after the march and was attended by a youth group brought by the Sisters of Life. Each screening proved to be a success as many people attending the film were moved by its strong message. Afterwards guests, and all of the kids, were treated to a question-and-answer session with actors, as well as director Peter Mackenzie, followed by photo opportunities with the cast and autograph signings.

by Ed Wilkinson

After 40 years, it looks like the daily press has finally discovered the March for Life.

The annual demonstration in Washington, D.C., to oppose the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion generally draws just about no coverage in the press. This year, it was different.

The daily papers’ websites all carried feature stories about the March for Life. Most were balanced news stories, but one in The New York Times was written from a particular bias. The Times article highlighted a recent statement by some Christian leaders that pro-lifers who oppose abortion should be just as virulently pro-life when it comes to gun control.

This is mixing apples and oranges. The immediate death of unborn babies is hardly the same as the potential danger of misusing firearms. The numbers alone tell the story. Since Roe v. Wade has been the law of the land, more than 55 million unborn babies have had their lives terminated.

The real question should have been whether or not the pro-lifers who are for gun control will be on the front lines when it comes to saving the babies. I think not.

This year’s March for Life was a huge success with estimates of the crowd hovering around half a million. Not bad when you consider the frigid temperatures and the threat of snow!

Our own pro-lifers from the diocese responded to the tune of almost 1,000 people. Eight buses were sponsored by our parent organization, DeSales Media Group, and some of those were over-subscribed. Add to that the parishes and organizations that traveled on their own or arranged for their own bus pick-ups.

Some groups, like at St. Mary’s Church, Winfield, and Presentation B.V.M., Jamaica, began their day early with Mass that preceded boarding the buses for Washington.

Bus captains reported delays retuning home not only because of the weather but also because the lines at rest stops were long due to the numbers of people participating in the march.

For those of you who could not make it to the nation’s capital, you were treated to live coverage seen on The NET, our sister cable television station. And, of course, later that evening and on the following Monday, there were feature segments about the march on our daily news show Currents.

No doubt about it, the March for Life garnered more attention this year. Perhaps, it’s the urgency of being up against the most pro-abortion president ever elected. Maybe it’s also because of the atrocity of our governor, Andrew Cuomo, fervently supporting the most radical abortion bill ever presented to the State Legislature. If you haven’t done so already, let your state representatives know your feeling. Simply join the New York State Catholic Conference’s advocacy network by logging on to www.nyscatholic.org.

The word is getting out. More and more people are professing the truth of the pro-life cause. Even the secular press is recognizing the pro-life fervor. There’s still a lot to be done, no doubt about it! But the tide is flowing in the right direction because justice and right are on the side of life.

“After these 40 years of hard work we may feel like the ‘chosen people’ of the Old Testament who wandered through the desert for 40 years,” said Bishop Kevin Farrell of Dallas as he spoke at the Life Vigil at the National Shrine.

But he urged those present to not grow discouraged and lose hope. “Moses never saw the Promised Land. Many of us who have labored for 40 years for the cause of life” may not get to see it either, Bishop Farrell added. But he assured the young people: “You will see the Promised Land.”

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Nellie Gray, who started the annual March for Life parade to protest the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion nationwide, has died at age 86.

She was found dead in her home Aug. 13 in Washington’s Capitol Hill neighborhood by a March for Life staffer, Gene Ruane, who said the medical examiner will determine the cause and date of her death.

The March for Life has grown into one of the signature events of the pro-life movement. After the first march in 1974, Gray, a Texas native, established the March for Life Education & Defense Fund to sustain it.

Each year in her remarks, Gray exhorted pro-lifers to promote and adhere to a series of “life principles” that would eliminate abortion and enhance life, to which she said there should be “no exception! No compromise!”

Ruane, an administrative assistant with the March for Life, told Catholic News Service Aug. 14 that leadership of the organization would be assumed by Terrence Scanlon, who has been its vice president “since the beginning.”

Funeral information was not immediately available. Gray was a member of St. Mary, Mother of God parish in Washington.

by Antonina Zielinska

Buses from throughout the diocese brought hundreds of pro-life supporters to the 39th annual March for Life Jan. 23 to join the tens of thousands of demonstrators in Washington D.C.

“I came to speak for the children who cannot speak for themselves,” said Michael Cucci, a parishioner of Most Precious Blood parish, Bath Beach.  “When so many people show up, it shows that people are not indifferent to laws that destroy life.”

Many who exercised their constitutional rights last Monday were teens and young adults.

Jovenes Unidos Con Cristo member Steven Gonzalez, 16, marched among their ranks. He said he had the opportunity to join the demonstration in previous years but chose not to attend. This year, however, he said he matured into the decision to march and was pleased with what he found.

“It showed me that the members of our generation are not self-indulged,” he said. “They care about other people.”

Fellow JUCC member, Jessica Hernandez, 13, from Bushwick said the march helped her discover herself.

“I’m not sure if I made a difference for others but I made a difference for me,” she said.

Jesus Raul Cepin, 16, also from the Brooklyn group, said the march has given him tools he can use back home.

“I think after coming here I can consider myself an advocate,” he said. “I can go back and tell my family and friends about how abortion is wrong.”

Fran Ruocco, a parishioner of Immaculate Heart of Mary, Windsor Terrace, said the march will help her in her virtual advocacy. She will post the photos she took of the many people who partook in the march on Facebook. She said this is her way of compensating for the lack of media coverage.

Mary Ann Selvagio, from  St. Ephrem parish, Dyker Heights, said law makers will not be able to ignore for long such large numbers of people who oppose abortion. She said what gave her hope was the number of young people and children who came to the demonstration.

“I hope that in my lifetime, and if not in my lifetime then in my grandchildren’s lifetime, the abortion law will be overturned because every life is precious from conception to when God calls us,” she said.

Eighteen-year-old Juan Francisco Bencosme, JUCC member, said that even though politicians may not want to pay attention to the demonstrators, this was more than a symbolic gesture.

“Prayers for the policies and politicians makes a difference,” he said. “Next year, I’ll come here, but hopefully I won’t have to because abortion will be illegal.”

Rivera said the spirituality of the event was clearly seen. Although the demonstrators were passionate about their message, there was no ill will. She said marchers were orderly and had a deep sense of purpose.

“There was so much love,” she said.

Kevin C. Freile, a college-seminarian at Cathedral Seminary Residence, Douglaston, said, “At the Mass Vigil for Life, I was extremely overwhelmed by the amount of young people, seminarians, priests, bishops and cardinal, all of whom, like me, want to advocate for the sanctity of life. It was such a great spiritual experience to see other young people, other seminarians who united with me and my diocese want to stand up for the rights of all human life. I was so blessed to be standing among the 400 seminarians, the more than 10,000 people in that shrine! It reminded me that the Church goes well beyond the Diocese of Brooklyn, that we are Catholic are universal, and that we can be united through our faith!”

Members of Congress who spoke at the rally said they were proud they had passed the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act and the Protect Life Act and voted to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and defund Planned Parenthood.

Americans “as a people are pro-life” because life and liberty “are intertwined and form the core of our national character,” House Speaker John Boehner told the crowd.

“God who gave us life gave us liberty,” said the Ohio Republican, who is a Catholic. He added that his pro-life stand isn’t political, “it’s just who I am.”

But now, said U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., “we must work to change the Senate and reclaim the White House, which not only obstructs pro-life legislation but has for the past three years advanced abortion in so many ways.”

Smith, a Catholic who is chairman of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, told the rallygoers that they were “an important part of the greatest human rights movement on earth – the selfless struggle by prayer, fasting and works to defend and protect all weak and vulnerable persons from the violence of abortion, infanticide and euthanasia.”

He also told the crowd he had a message for President Barack Obama: “The violent destruction of children in the womb – killing babies – is not an American value.”

The temperature in th nation’s capital hovered in the high 30s. Intermittent rain forced marchers to put on ponchos and assorted rain gear and pull out their umbrellas. The wet weather left the National Mall a soggy and muddy patch, which marchers slogged through after the rally as they headed to Constitution Ave., past the Capitol and up to the Supreme Court.

As for the size of the crowd, a late afternoon email alert from the District of Columbia to commuters said protesters numbered from 15,000 to 20,000. But media reports said March for Life officials had a permit from the National Parks Service for 50,000 people, and for the last several years they have put the number at 200,000.

Contributing to this story was Julie Asher.

March for Life participants make their way up Constitution Ave. to the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., Jan. 24, 2011.  Tens of thousands of people from across the United States, including several busloads from Brooklyn and Queens, are expected to gather in the nation’s capital on Monday, Jan. 23, for this year’s March for Life, which marks the 39th anniversary of the disasterous Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling that led to legalized abortion.   Reporters from The Tablet and NET television will be in Washington to cover the March.