By Seth Gonzales
The Texas Catholic
More than 5,000 pro-life demonstrators gathered at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center on Jan. 17 for the 2015 North Texas March for Life.
The event was organized by the Dallas-based Catholic Pro-Life Committee in conjunction with the dioceses of Dallas and Fort Worth. Representatives from First Baptist Church Dallas, Criswell College, Watermark Church and Christ for the Nations also participated.
Bishop Kevin J. Farrell and Auxiliary Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel were joined by Fort Worth Bishop Michael Olson in celebrating Mass prior to the march.
“I want to thank you all for your presence here today,” said Bishop Farrell, prior to the start of the Mass. “It means so much that we come out on this day to celebrate the great gift of human life. As we celebrate that gift of life, we also mourn the loss of so many millions of innocent children who have died because of a law that all began 42 years ago here in the city of Dallas.”
Pro-life supporters march through downtown Dallas during the North Texas March for Life Jan. 17. (BEN TORRES/Special Contributor)
Citing statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and the Guttmacher Institute, the National Right to Life Committee said 56 million abortions have been performed since the controversial 1973 Supreme Court case Roe vs. Wade.
Despite those numbers, Catholic Pro-Life Committee executive director Karen Garnett said she sees reason for optimism, pointing to the reduction of abortion facilities in Texas, the reduction in the number of abortions nationwide, and the survival of House Bill 2.
“We really are celebrating a lot of victories,” Garnett said. “The wreckage of legalized abortion in our country, the wreckage of Roe vs. Wade and how much it has harmed people will come to an end. We are filled with hope with the lower number of abortion facilities and the lower number of abortions that we’re seeing.”
Bishop Kevin J. Farrell, left, waves from a Harley Davidson motorcycle at the start of the North Texas March for Life on Jan. 17. (BEN TORRES/Special Contributor)
In February 2014, citing statistics from the Guttmacher Institute, the Washington Post reported that the number of abortions in the United States had plummeted to its lowest rate since1973.
On the state level, Garnett said there are now only 17 abortion facilities remaining in Texas; three of which are in Dallas, and only one in Fort Worth. If House Bill 2 survives legal challenges that many expect to end in the U.S. Supreme Court, Garnett said the number of abortion facilities in Texas could shrink to eight.
After Mass, demonstrators marched from the Kay Bailey Hutchison Center to the front of the Earle Cabell Federal Courthouse, where Roe vs. Wade was first filed as a legal case.
“Let nobody ever doubt that we will always stand up for life, and that we will never give up. We are determined to bring this victory home, and we will do it,” Bishop Farrell said. “We can never falter and we can never weaken. God is on our side, and once God is on our side, we will not fail.”
Children and families stand in prayer during the Roe Memorial Mass concelebrated by Dallas Bishop Kevin J. Farrell, Fort Worth Bishop Michael Olson and Dallas Auxiliary Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel Jan. 17 at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. (BEN TORRES/Special Contributor)
