March for Life 2013

Bridget Bator ’14

Staff Writer

Photo taken by Pete Bartels

On January 25^th, 2013, the entire sophomore class along with over 500 other members of the Diocese of Saginaw made a pilgrimage to our nation’s Capital where they marched in peaceful protest to end abortion. This year is a very special year for the March for Life as it is the 40^th Anniversary of the controversial Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade which legalized abortion in the United States. From 2009 to 2011, it has been projected that about 1, 212, 400 babies have been aborted in the United States alone and over 54 million total abortions since the 1973 court case. Planned Parenthood, the most popular means of abortion, administers over 300,000 abortions per year alone and received $487 million in federal grants in 2010. Each year, about 400,000 people and counting make a pilgrimage to Washington D.C. around January 22^nd, the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, to march on the National Mall until reaching the Supreme Courthouse where the protest ends.

In an interview with senior Mary Klenk, the Panther Print gained a better understanding of what it really means to be a part of such a huge event. As a senior, this past Friday was Mary’s third time going on the March for Life. “I first became really passionate about ending abortion when I found out that my birth grandfather had told my mother that she should abort me. After that, I felt really lucky and decided that I should use my life for something worthwhile. This march is part of my ministry,” says Klenk. Like Mary, many of the sophomores felt that they had made a difference during their experience.

On the day of the March, each sophomore left the 4H Center at approximately 6 a.m. to participate in a youth rally at George Mason University. This year, the rally and Mass had to be held at three different locations due to the incredibly large number of protestors. After the rally, the pilgrims from the Diocese of Saginaw participated in Mass and made their way to the National Mall afterwards. Back at the 4H Center, the Diocese was given a presentation about abortion featuring Christian singer-songwriter Amanda Vernon with a question-and-answer session with Bishop Cistone afterwards. At the conclusion of the interview, Klenk ended by saying, “I know I will continue to go on the March outside of high school. Abortion will always be something very personal for me.” Hopefully someday soon all of the efforts of the pro-life pilgrims will come to fruition and this horrible genocide will end.

Statistics courtesy of nrtl.org