Eight GHS students attended the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C on January 24. They took the 24-hour bus ride with St. Patrick’s Catholic Church and the Archdiocese of Omaha The students went with parent and chaperone Mrs. Heather Henry.
“I knew that the march was so meaningful and impactful to so many people,” Mrs. Henry said. “I just thought that it would be great to bring this experience back to our community.”
Mrs. Henry and the students arrived in an atmosphere that captured the purpose of the movement. They witnessed thousands gathered from all over the country who all stood in protest of abortion.
“It was very crowded and joyful when we got there,” junior Lily Brown said. “You would think that this movement would be super depressing and dull, but everyone was super happy and hyped for the whole thing.”
The march coordinators did make one large addition to the speaking roster to add to the excitement: President Donald J. Trump became the first president to speak at this annual event. His administration has made the pro-life movement a priority, so appearing at the March for Life was a goal of his to further his agenda.
“Hearing President Trump speak in real life was surreal,” junior Colton Smith said. “The only downside was that there was so much security, so it felt like going through TSA.”
The President kicked off what was to be a chain of speakers. Each was chosen by the March for Life team their pro-life messages and stories.
“The President was obviously the big draw, but they also had [childhood] abortion survivors, which was super moving to hear their stories,” Mrs. Henry said. “It was amazing hearing from these women and how they survived something that they shouldn’t have and were just amazingly positive.”

What inspired many at the march was Louisiana state representative Katrina Jackson. Many politicians came to this event, but she was the only Democrat to speak.
“It was very interesting to hear from the Democratic representative and hearing her say that you should respect life at any stage,” said sophomore Lilly Henry. “It doesn’t really matter who you are because we can all unite around this.”
The Democrat from Louisiana unified the crowd from the beginning. As the crowd moved through the capitol, they called for the changes to the Roe v Wade Supreme Court case.
“There were a ton of peaceful chants and songs going on,” Brown said. “It was really special to know that we were standing up for what is right.”
After wrapping up the day of protest, the students came back very energized. They want to spread the pro-life message to more people.
“I try to be an advocate for my friends,” Lilly Henry said. “I have a lot of pro-choice friends, so when they ask me where I went, it pops that conversation up. I try to encourage them to see that the pro-life message is the right way to go.”
The students and Mrs. Henry hope that the pro-life message will resonate with all people. They hope to take many more inspired people on the trip next year.
“After the first march, I was very engrossed in all the pro-life stuff,” said Smith. “Now after this March and hearing everyone speak and show up, I definitely want to keep with this. Hopefully, I can get many more people to get with this movement, because it may be the most pressing issue facing us today.”