Boston College Students Attend the March for Life

Shortly after midnight on Thursday January 25, 36 students from the BC Pro-Life Club—an increase from last year’s 32—departed for Washington, DC to attend the 47^th annual March for Life. There they joined thousands of activists who represented both secular and religious institutions of many diverse backgrounds, all marching from the National Mall to the Supreme Court Building to send a message about the importance of protecting life at every stage of development with particular focus on the unborn.

The theme of this year’s March was “Life Empowers: Pro-Life is Pro-Woman” to commemorate the centennial of the ratification of the 19th amendment, which guarantees women’s right to vote. A promotional video for the March contrasted the pro-choice viewpoint of many feminists today with that of Alice Paul, along with other early feminists, who viewed abortion to be “the ultimate exploitation of women.”

Before the March began, President Donald Trump addressed crowds assembled on the National Mall to affirm that “together we must protect, cherish, and defend the dignity and the sanctity of every human life.” He also noted his administration’s contributions to the pro-life cause. This address makes Trump the first sitting president to speak at the March for Life.

The Torch spoke with a few BC students regarding why they chose to attend the March. “I chose to go to the March to do my small part in the defense of life. The unborn are the most innocent human beings in our society. They need us right now more than ever,” said BC Pro-Life Club Secretary Christine Flatley, CSON ’22.

For many students, including Kenneth Goetz, MCAS ’22, the March for Life was a new experience. Goetz notes that walking in unison with the thousands attending the March helped him to visualize the magnitude of the pro-life movement, which one can forget while “focus[ing] on the arguments and surrounding the philosophy of the movement,” a task that he asserted is often “isolating.”

Others had attended the March several times before. This year, former president of the BC Pro-Life Club Bianca Passero, LSOEHD ’20, attended the March for Life for the sixth time. She explained the mix of emotions she experienced coming to the March for another year. “I always get a lot of hope attending the March for Life when I see hundreds of thousands of people marching for the unborn…it also gives me hope that Roe v. Wade will be overturned, maybe even in this decade. However, I also felt a lot of despair. The fact that this is the 47^th March for Life, and my sixth March for Life, makes it feel like nothing has changed…I dream of a day where we no longer have to march for life because our society values and protects the unborn and mothers! But until then, I’ll keep marching and fighting for life!”

In addition to the March for Life, the Pro-life club attended the 21st annual Cardinal O’Connor Conference on Life at Georgetown University. The name of the conference honors His Eminence John Cardinal O’Connor, the former Archbishop of New York and Georgetown alumnus known for his dedication to promoting a culture of life.

Although the BC Pro-life Club is a secular club, it chose to attend this conference this year because of the caliber of the speakers. “This was our first time going to the O’Connor Conference. The topics being covered in the concurrent sessions included a valuable variety of perspectives and specific focuses, allowing students to learn about their areas of interest and learn about new topics related to pro-life issues,” said BC Pro-Life Club President Annmarie Arnold, MCAS ’21.

The conference’s opening keynote addresses were given by Sr. Bethany Madonna, S.V., the vocation director for the Sisters of Life, and Jonathan Reyes, Ph.D, the Senior Vice President for Evangelization and Faith Formation for the Knights of Columbus. Additionally, students attended talks on a variety of pro-life topics. Among the nine talks titles included “St. John Paul II on the Gospel of Life,” given by George Weigel, a noteworthy Catholic theologian; “From Abortionist to Pro-Life Advocate,” by Kathi Aultman, M.D.; and “Red Rose Rescue: Direct Action in Defense of Pre-born Children & Their Mothers,” by Rev. Fidelis Moscinski, C.F.R. The conference also included a panel entitled “The Consistent Life Ethic & the Law” which discussed the intersection of law and public morality.

The group returned by bus following the conference. They arrived back on campus around 2:00 AM on Sunday January 26.

Featured image is courtesy of Peter Tran