Dear Editor: It was inspiring to see the number of schools and students in the diocese that took time to take a stand on the issue of guns and the recent March for Our Lives (March 24). Violence against people of all ages, but especially those in school, certainly needs to be addressed head on.

However, I couldn’t help but wonder as to why there is not comparable engagement and activity among the schools and students when it comes to the March for Life? As a regular participant in the January March for Life in Washington, D.C., the participation of diocesan students needs to be more strongly encouraged. There are many Catholic high schools from across the country that proudly participate, often traveling long distances to do so.

The diocesan Catholic high schools should encourage assemblies, rallies, prayer services and active march participation in this most fundamental march for life. Already there have been over 55 million innocent lives taken in the U.S. since the legalization of abortion and the outcry about it does not seem to reflect the gravity and violence of it.

Is it because the abortion issue has been around so long that it is no longer seen as a moral and critical issue? Perhaps, and I certainly hope that hearts have not been hardened or conditioned to the many voices that try to rationalize, disguise, or present an illusion of the reality and violence that takes so many innocent lives.

DEACON JOHN CANTIRINO

Brooklyn