Despite the snow and cold, thousands of people attended the 41st annual March for Life in Washington, DC, January 22, including this group of young people from our diocese.

The March for Life in Washington D.C. began as a grassroots response of pro-lifers nationwide to Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion throughout the nine months of a woman’s pregnancy. Each year, inspired by the Holy Spirit, Catholics and all people of good come together to pray and publicly intercede on behalf of the unborn, their parents, families, our communities, our nation and its leaders – that this prayerful presence may open hearts, minds, souls to the fullness of the Gospel of Life in our lives and laws.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has declared that in all the dioceses of the United States of America, January 22nd shall be observed as a particular day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life.