Hundreds of thousands of people are gathered in the nation's capital today to mark the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and protest abortion in the annual March for Life. Gathering from all over the country, protesters of all ages first heard from prominent pro-life, political and religious leaders before beginning the march.
Congressman Chris Smith (R-N.J.) was among the politicians who addressed the crowd on Friday, saying, "Thank you one and all for being an important part of the greatest human rights struggle on earth – the right to life movement. By the grace of God, we stand behind, with and unabashedly for both victims of abortion – women and children."
The sheer number of people has caused a traffic advisory to be issued for the District. The volume of protesters has also allowed for two separate marches to take place. The first route will proceed East on Constitution Avenue to First Street, NE, then South on First Street, NE, to the United States Supreme Court where they will rally and then disband.
The second march route will proceed West on F Street to 10th Street, NW, south on 10th Street to Constitution Avenue, NW, West on Constitution Avenue to 12th Street, NW, then South on 12th Street to the National Mall, where pro-life marchers will also rally and eventually disband.
CNA contacted the D.C Metropolitan Police Department for a crowd estimate but was told that due to disputes in the past between the city and protest organizers over the amount of people gathered, they have stopped giving estimates. However, police said that the march has progressed peacefully and without indecent thus far.
According to EWTN, 300,000 demonstrators are estimated to be taking part in the March for Life.
Just one day before the March for Life in Washington D.C., the results of a new survey put out by the Knights of Columbus and Marist College showed that the number of Americans who say they are pro-life is continuing to grow. Members of the Millennial generation (18-29 year-olds) say abortion is "morally wrong" at a rate of 58 percent.
The survey, which was conducted between December 2009 and January 2010, asked if abortion was "morally wrong." Fifty-six percent of Americans said they thought that abortion was indeed "morally wrong."
In addition to showing that more Americans are becoming pro-life, the results showed that the upcoming generations are more pro-life than those nearing retirement.
Source: CNA
Publish Date: January 22, 2010
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