March for Life

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5 Facts to Know About the Life-Saving Hyde Amendment

When you fly on a plane, on average 1 or 2 of those lives have been saved by the Hyde Amendment, according to the research of the Charlotte Lozier Institute.

Because of Henry Hyde’s life-saving work, millions of babies can celebrate their birthday. The policy which shares his name has been referred to one of the most important public health initiatives in history, credited with saving literally millions of lives since its enactment. Sadly it is also under attack by pro-abortion forces and lawmakers who want abortion to be free for all women and paid for by taxpayers like yourself.

Here’s what you need to know about the Hyde Amendment:

1. The Hyde Amendment prohibits federal Medicaid dollars from paying for abortion.

2. The Hyde Amendment was first enacted by Congress in 1976 and has been passed each year since then with bipartisan support.

3. Most Americans oppose their tax dollars paying for abortion.

4. Publicly funded abortions were happening in the 1970s at a high rate. Since the passage of the Hyde Amendment, the abortion rate has dropped significantly.

5. Since its enactment, an estimated 2.13 million lives have been saved due to the Hyde Amendment. (Read more on this data from Dr. Michael New in his report for the Lozier Institute, “Hyde @ 40: Analyzing the Impact of the Hyde Amendment.”)

While we still have our work cut out for us to make abortion unthinkable in the United States, the Hyde Amendment has been a policy that has aided in building a culture of life, through education and literally saving over 2 million lives since 1976.

WATCH: March for Life President Jeanne Mancini and Charlotte Lozier Institute President Chuck Donovan discuss the cultural and policy factors contributing to “why life is winning” in America.

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It’s Time to Defund Planned Parenthood

 

On Tuesday, March for Life President Jeanne Mancini, gathered with other pro-life leaders to urge Congress to take action on defunding the nation’s largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood, and to redirect those funds to life-affirming health care centers.

The press conference was part of Students for Life’s #Sockit2PP, in which they collected 328,348 baby socks, representing the tragic number of babies lost to abortion at Planned Parenthood each year.

You can read Jeanne Mancini’s remarks and watch the video below:

“On behalf of the March for Life and the collectively millions of pro-life Americans that have participated over the years—the large majority young people — we join together today in a united voice, a majority voice that seeks to defend and protect the inherent dignity of every human person. Abortion is the human rights issue of today but Americans are moving in the direction of life. 

Consider a recent poll revealed that eight out of 10 Americans would limit abortion to—at most—the first three months of pregnancy.

And most Americans (six out of 10) believe that abortion is morally wrong. While groups like Planned Parenthood seek to “shout your abortion,” the truth is that abortion always takes a life and wounds another and even the best PR campaign funded by millions of dollars can’t change this reality. 

Planned Parenthood is our nation’s largest abortion provider, sadly committing over 320,000 abortions during the last year that data was available. All the while getting almost half of their more than billion dollar budget from federal and state gov’t grants; from our taxpayer dollars.

Yet the majority of Americans (61 percent) do not support taxpayer funding for abortion.

We are at a critical juncture to send the federal and state dollars that our nation’s largest abortion provider has been receiving to real health alternatives, the kind of holistic health centers that outnumber Planned Parenthood facilities by a margin of 20 – 1.”

WATCH: (Jeanne’s remarks begin at the 22:00 mark.)

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Hundreds of Abortion Workers Leaving the Industry

 

Abby Johnson is the epitome of “the power of one.”

At the 2017 March for Life, Abby shared her story of quitting her job as director of a Planned Parenthood and going on to start a pro-life organization, And Then There Were None (ATTWN).

“I stand in front of you today as a woman who spent 8 years of her life working and running a Planned Parenthood facility but because of the power of conversion…I stand in front of you, as a woman who has been redeemed from her past.”

ATTWN has helped 330 abortion clinic workers and seven full-time abortion doctors leave the abortion industry. In fact, many of these “quitters,” as she affectionately calls them, stood with her on stage at the March for Life.

Abby relates the “power of one” to each of the “quitters” standing with her. “Almost every woman standing here today was touched by one person. For a client named Annette, it was some someone who slipped our website [brochure] under her windshield.” She goes on to say, “For me, it was a 13 week baby in the womb who changed my life.”

In 2010, the year after she quit her job at Planned Parenthood, Abby published, “Unplanned: The Dramatic True Story of a Former Planned Parenthood Leader’s Eye-Opening Journey across the Life Line.” In the memoir, Abby tells the story of assisting in an actual abortion procedure – of a 13-week baby in the womb – and being hit by the realization of what was happening. That dramatic moment led her to quit her job and walk out of the abortion industry forever.

>>>> Many March for Life participants had a chance to meet with Abby and purchase copies of “UnPlanned” at a book signing at the March for Life Conference and Expo. You can also purchase the book from Amazon.

Abby concluded her 2017 March for Life remarks with these encouraging and bold words, urging participants to dig down and realize the “power of one” in each of us, which collectively becomes an unstoppable force.

“Now is the time to be unabashedly pro-life; to be bold in our defense of the unborn and their mothers. Through the power of all of us, we will not only work to make abortion illegal but we will see a day when abortion is truly unthinkable in this country.”

>>>> Learn more about And Then There Were None.

>>>> Watch Abby Johnson’s full remarks at the 2017 March for Life.

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Pro-Life Concerns in Senate Health Care Bill

 

In May, the House of Representatives passed a health care reconciliation bill that contained pro-life protections, such as a prohibition on any federal tax subsidies paying for abortion and a redirection of Planned Parenthood’s funding towards Federally Qualified Health Centers.

But with so many issues on the table, I’m concerned about our pro-life priorities remaining in the legislation as it works its way through the Senate.

This is the opportunity to defund Planned Parenthood, so pro-life America must speak out!

>>>> Your voice is needed to urge the Senate to keep these critical pro-life policies in the bill. Contact your Senators today!

WATCH March for Life President Jeanne Mancini and March for Life Action President Tom McClusky discuss the pro-life concerns with the legislation.

Thank you for making your voice heard on this important issue!

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Honoring the Life of a Pro-Life Hero: Mark Gallagher

 

“The Power of One” was the 2017 March for Life theme.  That theme was made manifest in a gentle man with a giant heart, who showered his gifts on the pro-life movement. Today I had the privilege of attending the funeral of Deacon Mark Gallagher, a man, who, in the words of Congressman Chris Smith, was a “pro-life unsung hero,” working tirelessly as a pro-life lobbyist for the United States Catholic Bishops for 33 years. (Click HERE or the Congressional Record image to read the full statement from Congressman Smith.)

He passed away last week at the age of 75. He was a beloved husband to Kathy and father to Mark, Kim, Andrew, Lillian, David, Judy, Charles, Kate, and John. He was selfless, a “rock”, and a font of wisdom, as described to the packed church, including dozens of priests and a bishop.

While his family and friends are painfully grieving Mark’s sudden loss, there was overwhelming peace during the mass and a profound sense of the fruitfulness of his life.

One of his most significant legislative accomplishments was contributing to the enactment of the Hyde Amendment in 1976, which prohibits taxpayer dollars paying for most abortions. The Hyde Amendment is undoubtedly the single most effective pro-life public policy in the history of the United States; a study published in 2016 by Dr. Michael New showed that the Hyde Amendment has saved at least two million lives in its time.

Such an impact on our culture often comes at personal cost. Mark had war wounds from striving daily to fight the culture of darkness with a culture of life, love, light. He loved the Lord and lived his life totally centered on Him. His life and his sufferings bore inestimable fruit, much like the grain of wheat that falls to the ground and dies in order to bear fruit.

Mark Gallagher lived a beautiful life, centered on love. He perfectly embodied “the power of one.” May we all be inspired by his story to respond generously to God’s call and be the instrument that seeks the good of all.