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Arkansans attending the National March for Life in Washington D.C., returned home inspired by what they experienced. The Jan. 25 march was attended by an estimated 500,000 demonstrators who braved frigid temperatures to mark the 40th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision.
“It was cold and it rained and snowed at different points,” said Brother John Paul Richey, OSB, a teacher at Subiaco Academy who accompanied the delegation of 13 members of the school’s Students for Life group and three other chaperones. “But that was one of the things that made it so amazing. You don’t realize how committed people are until they show up in the snow.”
Brother John Paul was also impressed by the youthfulness of the march itself, as well as the fervor on display at related youth rallies.
“I saw one sign that said, ‘We are the pro-life generation’ and I believe that,” he said. “We have a nation of kids today who are realizing that there is something wrong going on here, and I think they are ready to pick up the standard and move forward.”
Rose Mimms, executive director for Arkansas Right to Life and a parishioner of St. Theresa Church in Little Rock, was attending her second such event.
“The march is not a quiet event,” she said. “There were young people chanting slogans and people playing bagpipes and just this sea of people that sweeps you along.”
Mimms was joined by several fellow Arkansans on the trip and said they were all were so impressed by the spectacle of the national march that they have already made their reservations for next year. They also made a pact for the 2014 event.
“We all agreed to return next year and to bring at least one person who has never attended the national march,” Mimms said.
