Last Friday, thousands of faithful pro-lifers marched for the unborn at the world’s largest March for Life, in Washington, D.C. The event took place on the eve of the 49th anniversary of Roe vs Wade, the infamous ruling that legalised abortion throughout the country.

Thousands of men, women and children took to the streets of Washington, D. C., in sub-zero temperatures, to affirm the right to life of unborn children. The annual march is the largest event of its kind in the world, with up to 100,000 people attending previous marches.

The event had especial significance this year, as the U.S. Supreme Court considers whether to uphold a Mississippi law that seeks to reduce the abortion time limit to 15 weeks, as reported by SPUC. If the Supreme Court rules in favour of Mississippi, the decision will significantly undermine and possibly overturn Roe vs. Wade.

On Friday, pro-lifers sang and held signs such as “I am the post-Roe generation”, as Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund, spoke out: “We are hoping and praying that this year, 2022, will bring a historic change for life… Roe is not settled law.”

The atmosphere was optimistic and peaceful. Chants included: “Hey hey, ho ho, Roe v Wade has got to go!”

Confronting the “lies” of the abortion industry

The march was attended by many high-profile pro-lifers who addressed the crowd. Lisa Robertson, of Duck Dynasty fame, spoke movingly about her own abortion trauma, after having an abortion at the age of 16.

As a teenager, she was lied to by a dishonest abortion industry; lies, said Robertson, which had a devastating impact on her life, as well as the life of her unborn child.

One lie, she explained, was that her baby was “just a glob of tissue. But that was a lie because we know that life begins at conception”. Another lie was that her body would “heal and be as good as new… That also was a lie. My body was never the same and I was never able to carry a child to full term.”

“That was 40 years ago and every day of my life I think of that day”, Robertson concluded. “These lies and many others nearly cost me my life, my family, my children that I carried and birthed. It did cost me two children and generations of grandchildren.”

Despite her trauma, Robertson, who is now a Christian, affirmed the need to “be pro-love and pro-life in a pro-hate and pro-choice world”.

“We’re the family of faith”

Actor Kirk Cameron, best known for his role in the U.S. sitcom Growing Pains, also stressed the importance of love.

“We’re the family of faith”, he said. “We love God, therefore, we love life. And our hope is not in the White House. It’s not in Congress. Our hope is not in the people who govern us or the laws that we make in this nation. Our hope is in the power of God working in the hearts of his people.”

Another speaker, Katie Shaw, 36, an advocate for the rights of people with Down’s syndrome, directly addressed the March’s 2022 theme – that Equality Begins in the Womb.

She said: “I am proud to be here today to march to show the world that people with a disability or not need a chance to show the world God’s plan for them. They need a chance to live their wonderful life outside the womb…

“I believe that equality for you, me, and everyone, started in the womb. It started the day of conception when God gave us our soul.”

Equality must apply to all

SPUC’s Michael Robinson, Executive Director (Public Affairs & Legal Services), said: “The Washington March for Life was a wonderful event, and one can sense a shift in momentum in favour of the pro-life movement in the United States.

“Roe is certainly not settled, and the battle for the unborn is gaining ground, we hope, in Washington, D. C., as well as in the UK, where SPUC is also fighting for the unborn and equal rights.

“As the wonderful Katie Shaw highlighted, equality begins in the womb. Equal rights mean equal rights for all. Politicians and lawmakers should take note, including President Emmanuel Macron, who, last week, sickeningly proposed that abortion be enshrined in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

“We must not allow the unborn to be trampled underfoot by the abortion industry, its advocates and the anti-life bigotry that seeks to eliminate beautiful people like Katie Shaw in the womb.

“The 2022 Washington, D.C. March for Life affirmed with love that equality must, by definition, apply to all, and that love will, in time, conquer all.”