WASHINGTON—Thousands of demonstrators participated in the annual March for Life in Washington on Jan. 24 as a new administration takes shape and pro-life advocates continue working toward an end to abortion.
The event marks the 52nd anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Roe v. Wade and comes less than three years after the justices overturned it in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health.
“Just because Roe v. Wade is overturned doesn’t mean our job is done yet,” Isabella Garcia, 21, of Georgia, told The Epoch Times at the pre-rally concert.
President Donald Trump, who supported the overturning of Roe v. Wade, addressed the March for Life via video just days after he and Vice President JD Vance took office. A day before the event, Trump pardoned 23 pro-life activists whom the Biden administration had prosecuted for their activities at abortion clinics.
“I’m praying for President Trump and his cabinet that they will be led by the Lord to do what’s best for the country,” 70-year-old Steven Kator of Virginia, who was also at the concert, told The Epoch Times.
In 2020, during his first term, Trump became the first president to speak at the March for Life. Vance, meanwhile, is scheduled to speak at the March for Life rally on Jan. 24.
“President Trump governed as a pro-life president during his first term, which resulted in a long list of accomplishments,” March for Life President Jeanne Mancini said in a statement on Jan. 23.
“We look forward to working with him and Vice President Vance as they dismantle the Biden Administration’s aggressive and unpopular abortion agenda and once again put wins on the board for vulnerable unborn children and their mothers.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) are also expected to speak at the rally, which will take place on the grounds of the Washington Monument. The March for Life will begin with a pre-rally concert at 11 a.m. ET, followed by the rally and a march to the Supreme Court on First St. Northeast at 1:00 p.m. ET.
This year’s theme is “Life: Why We March.” Mancini said she hoped the theme would “be a source of renewed energy and focus so needed for this moment.”
She said that “the pro-life community has seen countless highs and lows, but the value of vulnerable unborn children and their mothers has not changed.”
Two days ago, the Senate failed to obtain the necessary votes for the cloture on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which is aimed at ensuring medical care for babies who survive attempted abortions.
Under the Biden administration, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, effectively allowing states to implement more restrictive laws. But as state-level battles played out, pro-lifers suffered some losses in states such as Ohio, which rejected in 2023 an attempt to block a pro-abortion amendment to the state’s Constitution and approved an amendment to ensure abortion access.
Since the Dobbs v. Jackson decision, Trump has said that he sees abortion as an issue for states and rejected the possibility of a national abortion ban. He also told Time magazine it was “very unlikely” he would block the abortion pill, which has become a major tool for abortion access after the Dobbs decision.
Garcia said that while she’s not certain Trump will “actually be pro-life,” she’s hopeful “because last time, he did do a pretty good job in opening doors for Roe v. Wade to be overturned.”
Kennedy and Garcia each wanted to see an end to abortion but expressed skepticism about methods of achieving that. Garcia said that while a national ban would be ideal, she didn’t know if the courts would allow it.
Kator, who is from Virginia, said he wanted to see the full abolition of abortion but didn’t think it was achievable through laws. “It’s only achievable through changed hearts and that’s the job of Christ.”
