Organization: City University of New York/ University Computer Center
Date: Tuesday, 26 Jan 1993 07:42:25 EST
From: Marty Helgesen <MNHCC@CUNYVM.BITNET>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.catholic
Subject: March for Life

Friday, January 22, was the anniversary of the Supreme Court's 1973
decisions that legalized abortion on demand for the full nine months
of pregnancy.  I participated in the March for Life that is held
every year on that date that will live in infamy.  It was larger than
previous Marches.  March organizers estimated 250,000.  The media
reported 75,000, but the media consistently under-report the size of
pro-life marches.  I went to the first March in 1974 by chartered
bus. When the bus arrived it was given a sequential number that was
posted in window so we could find our bus easily after the March.  It
was years ago, so I no longer remember the exact numbers, but divid-
ing the highest number I saw into the reported attendance indicated
that each of those large buses about 6 to 8 passengers.  (And, of
course, many Washington area residents went to the March by Metro or
city bus.)  Britain has a press council that has the power to force
newspapers to print corrections of erroneous stories.  Some years ago
the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children held a large demon-
stration in London.  _The Guardian_, a leading British paper, so
egregiously under-reported the attendance that the press council
required it to print a front page correction.

During the presidential election campaign Clinton's staff had a sign
in their office, "It's the economy, stupid."  One sign at the March
said, "It's a child, stupid."

People from Human Life International (P.O. Box 2024, Baltimore, MD
21297-0330) distributed signs with the words "FREEDOM OF CHOICE???"
and a photograph of the top half of the head of an aborted baby held
in forceps.  It had been found in a trash bag outside an abortion
mill in Houston in 1987, along with a lot of other pieces of dead
babies.  I carried one of those signs.   Unfortunately the signs were
seen primarily by people in the March. There were very few bystanders
watching the March.  Therefore, when I reached the end and walked to
the hotel where I was staying that night I continued to display the
sign so ordinary people could see it.  While I was crossing a street
two men in their twenties were crossing the other way.  When one of
them craned his neck to see what I was carrying I shifted the angle
so they could see the full picture.  I then confirmed that it was
indeed a piece of a baby's head and briefly gave the background.  The
result was a shocked, "My God."  I think they learned something about
the reality of choice and abortion.  HLI sells copies of the picture
in various sizes from postcard size up to the placard size I was
carrying for people who want to display or distribute them.

I had suggested that pro-lifers on the net who were attending the
March and staying over Friday night could meet face to face.  Howev-
er, most people attending the March did not stay.  The only people
who showed up were Richard Chonak and Steve Frezza.  (Steve brought
two friends of his, but they have just gotten on the net and didn't
know anybody.)  In case anyone doesn't know, Steve is the editor of
an online prolife newsletter.  You can request it from him at
frezza@ee.pitt.edu .

Saturday I attended a March for Life convention.  I'm not going to go
into details, but I will mention that one speaker said that after
World War II Admiral Yamamoto said that Japan had expected that the
sneak attack on Pearl Harbor would administer a crushing blow, but
instead it awoke a sleeping giant that crushed them.  This was said
in connection with the fact that the election of Bill Clinton was
followed by the largest March for Life yet.  The election of a pro-
abortion president is a setback, but ultimately we will win.

I went to Washington by train and arrived in time to visit the Li-
brary of Congress Friday morning.  There is a special exhibit of
items from the Vatican Library that is worth seeing.  I rented a tape
recorder with a description of the exhibits.  It took about an hour
to go through the exhibit.  The exhibit will be there until April 30.
This is not a travelling show that will go to other libraries or
museums around the country.  After April 30 it goes back to Rome.
-------
Marty Helgesen
Bitnet: mnhcc@cunyvm   Internet: mnhcc@cunyvm.cuny.edu

"Experience beats in vain upon a congenital progressive."
        --  C. S. Lewis