Why do we march?
With that being the theme of this year's March for Life, I found myself examining my own motivations for driving to D.C this past weekend to stand in the cold for a few hours and walk a little less than a mile among thousands of other pro-life individuals.
Amid these headlines about the big speakers of the event, it’s easy to get caught up in the politics and divisiveness of the abortion issue.
It seems the major news sources only see one motivation for the march: blind faith in a political agenda.
But I wanted to share a little bit about one of the lesser-known, but equally impactful speakers I got to hear from Friday. When Beverly Jacobson became pregnant with her daughter, doctors discovered that her pre-born child would be disabled for the rest of her life. In the face of this adversity, doctors tried to convince Beverly that she was not strong enough to go through with this pregnancy. Beverly decided to go through with the pregnancy and embraced life. Now, she runs the nonprofit, Mama Bear Care, which seeks to nurture all life and support families in similar situations.
A second speaker that made a real impact on my own participation with the pro-life movement was Josiah Presley, a now 29-year old abortion survivor. Today, Josiah remains relatively unscathed. The only mark left from the botched surgical abortion performed at two months on his mother is found within his arm, which is disfigured from when doctors attempted to dismember and cut him from his mother’s womb. Within the speech, Presley emphasized the role that comes with his unique situation as an abortion survivor. He identified his role for marching, stating, “Today, I march to be a voice for those who are voiceless.”
I wanted to share these important figures because the pro-life movement is not just the political issue that it is often boiled down to in the media. The reason why we march goes beyond all ideological and cultural divisions.
In the face of a society that treats human life as a choice and a burden, we march because abortion could have stolen the lives of Josiah Presley and Beverly Jacobson’s daughter.
We march because women deserve a better solution to their struggles than being coerced into the unjust killing of their pre born child.
We march because the life of every single human on this earth is precious, no matter their background, their appearance, or their abilities.
We march for life, all life.
