BC Students Attend Students for Life Conference

Boston College Pro-Life Club Students after a Mass at the Catholic University of America.

Friday the 22nd of January marked the 37th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision Roe v Wade which stated that denying women access to abortion is a violation of due process of law. In protest of the decision, seen by critics as a clear case of judicial activism, a reading into the constitution of “rights” or “privileges” not contained or implied therein, thousands of pro-life activists joined the annual March for Life in our nation’s capitol. Some statistics claim that marchers numbered upwards of a quarter of a million. Most marchers hope an annual presence in Washington will be one strong factor among many leading to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, eventually annihilating the need for a march in the first place.

Aside from gathering en masse, protestors normally hear from respected authorities in the pro-life world. Past speakers have included Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Alveda King, niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Feminists for Life, Presidents Ronald Regan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Benedict XVI, Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, has sent written messages in the past, encouraging the pro-life movement and voicing his appreciation for the enthusiasm exhibited by today’s youth. Current U.S. President Barack Obama, who has stated that should his daughters “make a mistake” he would not wish them to be “punished” with a child, has not been in attendance despite invitations to speak.

Boston College students at the March for Life in Washington, DC

Although personally unable to attend this year’s march, I was able to fly into Washington to participate in the Students for Life of America’s (SFLA) annual conference at the Catholic University of America (CUA). SFLA represents the largest gathering of pro-life students nationwide. The conference has grown in size from 400 in 2007 to 1,200 in 2010, and continues to be a source of strength and support in the pro-life movement.

Despite arriving at 8 AM and not finishing until almost 9 PM, the long day hindered no one’s learning experience. Being surrounded by fun-loving and likeminded people provides the strength and confidence necessary for pro-life work in the coming year. We were fortunate enough to hear testimony from women and men alike who have been negatively affected by the violence of abortion, lawyers who provided information on student’s legal rights on campus, and members of the media industry on broadcasting pro-life messages in the media, to name a few. Rep. Chris Smith made an appearance and gave a brief speech encouraging pro-life students in the work. He said he is proud to stand up for children no matter where they are, in the womb or in Darfur. The keynote address was given by social activist and author Phyllis Schlafly, whose spunk, wit, and common sense were a refreshing breeze over the almost violent rhetoric heard on both sides of the abortion debate.

Unfortunately, due to the long duration of the conference, many speakers do nothing beyond repeat what has been said earlier in the day. Even with an issue as complex and trying as abortion, there is only so much to be said in one day to a crowd of likeminded people. Also unfortunate, many speakers, reveling in the comfort of addressing a homogeneous crowd of pro-lifers, take the time to divulge in base rhetoric or overemotional, bombastic speech. Some speakers throughout the day tended to sound almost like preachers delivering sermons. A levelheaded, articulate, and reasonable approach to being pro-life was, sadly, a rarity at the SFLA conference. For that reason, I was extremely impressed by speakers who broke from this pattern, such as Clark Forsythe of Americans United for Life. He spent about 45 minutes giving a lesson on the virtue of prudence and how it can, when properly understood, guide successfully each individual decision of the pro-life movement, no matter how small. When the pro-life movement submits itself, said Forsythe, to virtue, its mission can be better achieved. He cited as an example William Wilberforce, the English politician depicted in the 2006 film Amazing Grace, who brought anti-slave trade legislation through Parliament. His prudential decisions, made over the course of several decades, made his mission a successful one. Forsythe insisted that such an example is one which students today ought to emulate and learn from.

Despite shortcomings such as hackneyed, bombastic rhetoric and a bit of redundancy, the conference proved yet again to be a sturdy support for pro-life students nationwide, providing us with the energy and motivation to carry out another year of pro-life work. We students look forward to a time when our nation’s laws reflect the justice due to life at all stages, be it an unborn child or an expectant mother, and when the conference, much like the march in Washington, will no longer be necessary.

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