By Marnie McAllister, Record Editor
Five buses full of people opposed to abortion, plus carloads of like-minded people, traveled from the Archdiocese of Louisville to Washington, D.C., last weekend for the Jan. 27 March for Life and other events that marked the Supreme Court’s 1973 decision that legalized abortion on demand in the United States.
Organizers estimate that about 700,000 pro-lifers attended the events. Ed Harpring, pro-life coordinator for the archdiocese, estimates that between 300 and 400 of them came from the archdiocese.
“There was a lot of enthusiasm,” said Harpring, noting that November’s elections have given new hope to the movement at the state and national level.
Noting that the delegation from the archdiocese included several student groups, Harpring said, “The infusion of so many young people (in the movement) is exciting. They see this (issue differently) — it was a wrong decision already in place when they were born. They realize it’s their generation — the pro-life generation — that may change this law.
“Because of ultrasounds, they see it clearly,” he added. “Most millennials are social-justice oriented and they’re taking ownership.”
Kentucky Right to Life chartered two buses that included students from local high schools and parish youth groups in addition to adults. Sacred Heart Academy, Immaculata Classical Academy and St. Paul Church in South Louisville each chartered a bus to carry students and adults, too, Harpring said.
He added that the trip served as a pilgrimage, noting that a vigil Mass celebrated at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception drew a packed house and included a procession with more than 1,000 members of the clergy and seminarians.
“It really was a special grace before we marched,” he said of the Mass.
A group of about 150 people also gathered on Jan. 27 to pray for life at the annual archdiocesan Walk for Life in downtown Louisville. They stopped for prayer at the Jefferson County Courthouse, EMW Women’s Clinic, local hospitals and the corner of Fourth Street and Muhammad Ali, where Thomas Merton had his epiphany. The pilgrims prayed for a variety of issues related to the dignity of life, including abortion, worker rights and wages and an end to the death penalty, among others.
