March for Life

March for Life Announces President Trump will Address the 47th Annual March for Life in Person

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March for Life Announces President Trump will Address the 47th Annual March for Life in Person

Below is a statement from March for Life President, Jeanne Mancini, regarding today’s announcement that President Trump with address the 47th annual March for Life in person:

We are deeply honored to welcome President Trump to the 47th annual March for Life. He will be the first president in history to attend and we are so excited for him to experience in person how passionate our marchers are about life and protecting the unborn. From the appointment of pro-life judges and federal workers, to cutting taxpayer funding for abortions here and abroad, to calling for an end to late-term abortions, President Trump and his Administration have been consistent champions for life and their support for the March for Life has been unwavering. We are grateful for all these pro-life accomplishments and look forward to gaining more victories for life in the future.

– Jeanne Mancini, President of March for Life –

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Remembering a Pro-life Heroine: Mary Ann St. Cloud

Every January since 1974, thousands upon thousands have made a pilgrimage to Washington D.C., sometimes in the frigid cold, to march against the abhorrent decisions in Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton, to March for Life.

Our marching and our year-round advocacy for the unborn would not be possible without the generosity of many pro-life people from across the country. As we approach the 2020 March for Life on January 24th, we’d like to recognize a March for Life benefactor whose life testifies to the power of embracing her personal mission in the battle for the right to life for the unborn and compassionate care for women, our friend Mary Ann St. Cloud.

Written below is a short biography of Mary Ann authored by her daughters Mary Pat and Antonia.

We hope her life inspires you to continue fighting for the unborn!

“Mary Ann St Cloud was a lifelong defender of the humanity, rights, and lives of the unborn. Even in her final years and illness her passion for the prolife cause never wavered.

When Mary Ann moved to the Sacramento area in the early 1970’s she and a small group of like-minded women began to meet to strategize ways to fight the pro-abortion laws and culture.  Various pro-life groups were in their founding stages at this time. These ladies formed a group called The Committee to Defend the Unborn. They would strategize on how they could be an effective voice. While these ladies were supporters of the early Sacramento Life Center and Sacramento Right to Life they were also their own pro-life voice. Knowing that their state was one of the first to legalize abortion six years before Roe v Wade, they became educated and knowledgeable of the legislative process; they wrote letters to legislators, stayed aware of pending legislation and were a presence at the state capital as bills came forward. They participated in demonstrations to be a presence to the general public. The committee periodically put out a newsletter. An edition always went out during an election season with information about the candidates so voters would be informed.  The group also corresponded with local spiritual leaders and pastors to keep the pro-life cause alive in the nearby religious communities. Through all these endeavors Mary Ann was involved from the very beginning and at the forefront.  As other pro-life organizations grew and expanded their influence and services, committee members became volunteers for these groups while carrying on their personal missions.

Mary Ann St. Cloud (middle) with her daughters Mary Pat (left) and Antonia (right)

Mary Ann was always proud and forthright about her pro-life support. She was never defensive or apologetic for her views and activism. She instilled this passion in her two daughters who are actively pro-life; including one who has been active for over forty years in a myriad of pro-life activities and is now an officer and board member of the Sacramento Life Center. (The SLC founded in 1972, was the fourth of now 3,000 pregnancy medical clinics established across the country starting as a resource center working out of a member’s home.)

Mary Ann was a great admirer of Nellie Gray.  She was impressed with her eloquence, commitment and ability to bring about a national voice for the unborn. She was thrilled with the growth of the March for Life into the remarkable organization that it is today. She appreciated the importance of this national voice and assemblage recognizing the importance of all our communities coming together as one great voice for the defenseless unborn. The National March for Life has a proven record that inspired confidence in Mary Ann. It was no surprise to the family that Mary Ann chose the National March for Life to be a benefactor of her trust.

Mary Ann Taylor was born in Sacramento on July 2, 1932. Mary Ann graduated from St Francis High School and went on to Stanford University where she met Charles Martell. After she graduated, they were married in 1954. Mary Ann was widowed in 1969 and raised her two daughters alone until she remarried in 1979. She passed away on February 18, 2019.”

The pro-life movement continues to save lives because of thousands, like Mary Ann, who confidently say “yes” to their own unique, unrepeatable mission to uphold the inherent dignity of life. Thank you, Mary Ann St. Cloud, for your generosity to the pro-life movement and to the March for Life!

 

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March for Life Announces Additional Speakers for the 47th Annual March for Life

Washington, D. C. – The March for Life Education and Defense Fund is excited to announce two additional speakers at the 47th annual March for Life on January 24th, 2020. The First Lady of Louisiana Donna Hutto Edwards and Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) will be speaking at the March for Life Rally. First Lady of Louisiana Donna Hutto Edwards has been a strong supporter of the pro-life movement and, despite being advised to abort, chose life for her daughter after she was diagnosed with spina bifida in the womb. Rep. Scalise has been a staunch advocate for the sanctity of life in Congress, especially through his work on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. The theme for this year’s March for Life is Life Empowers: Pro-Life is Pro-Woman.

We are honored to have the First Lady of Louisiana and Rep. Steve Scalise speaking at this year’s March for Life,” said Jeanne Mancini, president of March for Life. “Both First Lady Edwards and Rep. Scalise are inspiring pro-life advocates whose work and personal experiences speak to the dignity of every life.

Additional speakers at the March for Life Rally include:    

  • Jim Daly – President, Focus on the Family
  • Marjorie Dannenfelser – President, Susan B. Anthony List
  • Elisa Martinez – Founder, New Mexico Alliance for Life
  • David Platt – Pastor, McLean Bible Church
  • His Grace Bishop Apostolos of Medeia
  • State Senator Katrina Jackson (D-LA)
  • Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ)
  • Melissa Ohden, survivor of a failed saline infusion abortion
  • Claire Culwell, survivor of a failed surgical abortion

 

Space is limited in the media tent and RSVPs are required. To RSVP, please email Matille Thebolt (mthebolt@crcpublicrelations.com), Bridget Hobbs (bhobbs@crcstrategies.com), or Emily Degnan (edegnan@crcpublicrelations.com).

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Ten Tips for the March for Life

TEN TIPS FOR THE MARCH FOR LIFE

 

Be prepared for cold weather!

The streets of Washington, D.C. can be chilly in January. Check the weather forecast before you leave, but bring your warmest winter coat, no matter what! Wear layers – you can add or remove layers depending on the temperature and bring hand warmers, gloves, a hat, and waterproof boots.

Stay connected with your group members.
The crowds are very large at the March for Life, so try to stay physically connected to your group as much as possible. Make sure everyone has at least one leader’s cell phone number, and inform everyone of the time and meeting place after the March is finished. Give everyone a map of the March for Life route, which you can download HERE.

Know your transportation options.
If you’re with a large group with planned transport, make sure everyone is informed of the meeting and pick-up locations. If you’re traveling with a small group, we recommend using public transportation. Check out the March for Life website for more travel information and tips for DC public transportation.

Check out other events throughout the week
Turn your trip to Washington, D.C. into a pro-life pilgrimage by participating in a number of events around our nation’s capital.
The March for Life is hosting events from January 22-24, including:
March for Life Expo
March for Life Conference
March for Life Youth Rally
Find other related events on the March for Life website:
MarchForLife.org/related-events

Download the March for Life App
Stay up to date on March for Life events, connect with other marchers, and receive event updates by downloading the March for Life app!

Bring signs
Be creative and let the world know why we march! Check out some of our favorite signs for some inspiration! Even if you forget or can’t bring signs, many groups will have signs to hand out on the National Mall.

Share your experience
It’s important to show why we march!
During the event, post pictures and videos of your experience at the March for Life and tag them with #WhyWeMarch and #MarchForLife! We’ll be sharing our favorite posts at all our events, including the March for Life Conference, Youth Rally, Expo, and Rally and on WhyWeMarch.org!

Show your representative that you VOTE pro-life
Traveling to Washington, D.C. for the March for Life gives the pro-life movement a unique opportunity to directly let our nation’s leaders know America is proudly pro-life!
After the March for Life, consider visiting your representative’s office to be a voice for the unborn. Before visiting, be sure to read the official March for Life Action lobbying booklet, Capitol Hill 101.

Thank the amazing volunteers
The March for Life would not be possible if not for the dozens of volunteers who give their time, talents, and service to building a culture of life. We are especially grateful for the continued support and service of the Knights of Columbus. If you pass by one of our amazing volunteers, please give them a big thank you!

Stay connected with the March for Life year-round
Sign up for text message alerts so you can get important, late-breaking information by texting MARCH to 73075.
Follow the March for Life on social media.
Facebook: March for Life
Twitter: @March_for_Life
Instagram: @marchforlife 
Youtube: March for Life Education and Defense Fund
Follow March for Life Action to stay up to date on our pro-life efforts on Capitol Hill.
Facebook: March for Life Action 
Twitter: @MFLAction

 

Thank you for participating in the 2020 March for Life! We look forward to marching with you!

 

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Early Feminists Were Right About Unborn Human Life

(Originally published in The Daily Signal)

Although they were considered radical at the time, American suffragists were unrelenting in their efforts to transform our country’s politics and empower women with the right to vote.

The year 2020 marks the centennial of their victory in that battle, and while it is an occasion to celebrate, it is also a reminder that we must continue the work of these early feminists.

In addition to voting rights, suffragists championed abolition, equality in education, equal pay for equal work, and the right to life for the unborn.

Unlike many radical feminists of the second half of the 20th century and into 21st century, these women realized that abortion does not empower women. In honor of these suffragists, the theme for the 47th annual March for Life is “Life Empowers: Pro-Life Is Pro-Woman.”

American suffragists looked to the examples of their predecessors and were especially inspired by the English philosopher, author, and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft.

Born in Spitalfields, London, in 1759, Wollstonecraft began advocating equality for women long before the height of the women’s suffrage movement in the United States.

Though she is perhaps best known as the mother of Mary Shelley, who wrote the classic novel “Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus,” Wollstonecraft was a prominent author in her own right. Her most famous work, “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman,” was published in 1792 and circulated several decades later by American suffragists Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony in their newspaper, Revolution.

Wollstonecraft advocated education reform as a means of empowering women and argued that the education system had been designed to oppress women, undermining their formation in a way that prevented them not only from flourishing as wives and mothers, but also blocking them from entering professional fields.

She believed that empowered women would embrace motherhood and described women who fulfilled their responsibilities as “independent.” According to Wollstonecraft, women’s first duty “is to themselves as rational creatures” and secondly “as citizens, is that, which includes so many, of a mother.”

Wollstonecraft viewed abortion as a depraved consequence of society’s failure to recognize the intrinsic value of women, as well as of the prevailing attitude that women should be objectified and subjugated by men.

She described women and children as victims of this failure to value women and motherhood:

Women becoming, consequently, weaker, in mind and body … have not sufficient strength to discharge the first duty of a mother; and sacrificing to lasciviousness the parental affection, that ennobles instinct, either destroy the embryo in the womb, or cast it off when born.

Wollstonecraft promoted pro-life ideals in her writing, but she also embodied the sacrifices she wrote about in her own life as a single mother, having her first child, Fanny Imlay, out of wedlock despite the harsh judgment of society.

Drawing on her experience as a mother, she argued that better education for women would allow future generations to flourish. She wrote that raising future generations of children “has justly been insisted on as the peculiar destination of woman” and therefore that “the ignorance that incapacitates them must be contrary to the order of things.”

Like Wollstonecraft, today’s pro-life feminists work to transform our culture into one that is both pro-child and pro-woman, recognizing that abortion violates motherhood and undermines women’s empowerment.

Since 1973, abortion has eliminated more 60 million children and harmed millions of mothers in the process. Giving women the right to vote was once considered radical, but today we often take it for granted.

We hope someday to see a world in which embracing the dignity of every human life, both women and their unborn children, is no longer considered a radical idea.

Jeanne Mancini is the President of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund and Alexandra DeSanctis is a staff writer for National Review.