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Thousands of pro-life activists braved snow and below-freezing temperatures to protest legalized abortion in the nation’s capital on Friday, walking to the U.S. Capitol and Supreme Court.
Protesters at the 51st National March for Life, which is held every year around the Jan. 22 anniversary of Roe v. Wade, which the Supreme Court overturned in June 2022, called for legal restrictions on the procedure with exceptions for rape, incest and the health of the mother.
But they also expressed a renewed desire to support pregnant women with resources, exhibiting softer rhetoric in the second national march since the high court’s Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling, which returned jurisdiction over abortion to the states.
The theme of this year’s march embodied that pivot: “With Every Woman: For Every Child.”
“Though legislation protecting life remains critical, even more important is the work of changing hearts and minds,” said Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life. “That’s why we will continue marching at the state and federal level until our nation’s laws reflect the basic truth that all human life is created equal and is worthy of protection.”
SEE ALSO: WATCH: Go inside the March for Life
This year’s march comes as abortion ranks high as a campaign issue for both sides heading into November’s general election.
President Biden and other Democrats are campaigning on the issue, hoping to capitalize on a mounting backlash against the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs. Democrats have notched a series of electoral wins since the decision.
The Biden reelection campaign announced Thursday that it would commemorate Monday’s anniversary of the Roe v. Wade ruling with a blitz of ad buys, campaign rallies and events across the nation. The television and digital ads will shine a spotlight on Republican-led abortion restrictions in swing states such as Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Polls since the Dobbs ruling have shown movement away from some anti-abortion positions as some activists push for near-total state abortion bans.
Several Republican pro-life members of Congress spoke at the noon rally on the National Mall, which preceded the march along Constitution Avenue.
They included House Speaker Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana and Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey. Both emphasized the work of pregnancy resource centers, the needs of foster children and legislation supporting high-quality health care.
“We have every reason to be optimistic, my friends, that we can change public opinion,” Mr. Johnson told the cheering crowd.
“Let’s be encouraged, let’s press on and hope that we can join together and make this great difference,” he said. “We can stand with every woman for every child, and we can truly build a culture that cherishes and protects life.”
The lawmakers touted two pro-life bills that the Republican-led House recently passed, including one that would require colleges and universities to inform pregnant students about options other than abortion.
The other bill would preserve federal funding for pregnancy resource centers, which have faced vandalism and increased political attacks since the Dobbs decision.
“There are more than 2,700 pregnancy resource centers throughout the United States — each and every one of them an oasis of love, compassion, empathy, respect and care for both mothers and their precious children,” Mr. Smith added.
Both bills are expected to fail in the Democratic-led Senate, and President Biden is expected to veto any pro-life legislation that reaches his desk.
Mr. Smith touted an annual Knights of Columbus/Marist abortion poll released this week, which found that 83% of adults support pro-life pregnancy resource centers, including 75% of Democrats.
That’s down from 91% in the same poll last year, as advocates of abortion access have targeted the centers with claims that they deceive women seeking abortion services.
Former NFL tight end Benjamin Watson praised the crowd for braving the cold and snow.
“Roe is done, but abortion is still legal and thriving in too much of America,” he said.
Jim Harbaugh, head football coach at the NCAA champion University of Michigan, introduced Mr. Watson as a “warrior for the sanctity of life.”
In their permit applications to the National Park Service, organizers estimated 50,000 marchers for the protest, the same as in past years.
But the raucous crowd Friday appeared smaller than last year’s gathering, perhaps reflecting the harsh weather.
Some marchers played in the snow that fell throughout the day. Others held umbrellas.
One man, 62-year-old Dan Beazley, carried a 10-foot cedar wood cross he constructed in his garage.
“If every person just focused on the message of the cross, they would choose life every time,” said Mr. Beazley, who attends Connection Church near Detroit.
Diego Infante, an 18-year-old freshman at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire, came with a group of 13 students to attend his third march.
“I think we have to keep pushing bans across the country, but we also need to support resources for mothers and children,” Mr. Infante said.
Jean Marie Davis, one of the rally speakers, shared her journey from prostitution to motherhood after she visited a pregnancy resource center as a client.
Now the mother of a 9-year-old son and director of Branches Pregnancy Center in Vermont, she called allegations that the centers hide their anti-abortion stance a “false narrative.”
“It’s personal for me because I would have been dead if I hadn’t gone there,” Ms. Davis, 38, told The Washington Times. “They told me about a man named Jesus, and they saved my soul and my life. I had pimps who wanted to kill my child.”
Liberty University, a Christian school in Virginia, bused 1,200 students to this year’s march.
“I feel very deeply about stopping abortion because I’ve seen the emotional turmoil and regrets,” said Cooper Pierson, a 20-year-old Liberty sophomore from West Virginia. “I understand there should be exceptions for rape and molestation, but I think abortion is a matter of convenience for many women.”
The Supreme Court’s decision to return jurisdiction over abortion to the states has led to a patchwork of emerging legislative and legal struggles.
While about half of states have moved to close abortion clinics and limit access to chemical abortion pills, the other half have moved to expand access.
Since the Dobbs ruling, March for Life organizers have enlarged their focus to include statewide marches.
The organization has expanded to include state marches in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, New Jersey, North Dakota and Pennsylvania this year.
Penny Nance, president of the conservative Concerned Women for America, rejected the notion that pro-life activists should back down from legal and legislative battles to restrict abortion nationwide.
“The left thinks we’re back on our heels, but that’s absolutely false,” Ms. Nance said. “This is the time to lean in on the state and maybe federal level, not back down.”
Gracelynn Denning, who traveled from Lynchburg, Virginia, to attend her first march, expressed little enthusiasm for federal restrictions.
“I think we need to focus on supporting foster kids in need and pregnant women who are struggling,” said Ms. Denning, 19. “Legislation needs to be state by state.”
• Jeff Mordock contributed to this report.
• Sean Salai can be reached at ssalai@washingtontimes.com.
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