SAN FRANCISCO, California, January 15, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – One week after pro-lifers from around the world gather in Washington, D.C. for the March for Life, the other side of the country will see its own demonstration to end abortion with the 15th annual Walk for Life West Coast.
On Saturday, January 26, pro-lifers are invited to gather at San Francisco’s Civic Center Plaza, where they will walk two miles down Market Street until they reach Embarcadero Plaza.
The event’s mission is to “change the perceptions of a society that thinks abortion is an answer” when it really “does violence to women and to their children, both physically and emotionally,” the group says. Its goal is to “be a vocal and visual message that people of the West Coast stand for life,” to reach out to women harmed by abortion, and to “inform society of the damage done to women by abortion.”
This year’s speakers include Patricia Sandoval, a former Planned Parenthood worker who is now an EWTN host and pro-life, pro-chastity speaker; Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood director who today is a leading pro-life activist; Issues4Life Foundation president and ordained Baptist preacher Walter B. Hoye II; and Father Shenan Boquet, president of Human Life International.
“Ms. Sandoval’s personal testimony is sure to keep the Walkers riveted as they listen to how she fought her way back from abortion, drugs, and homelessness, to find help and healing through Jesus Christ,” the Walk for Life said in a press release.
“Defending Life and being Pro-Life is for us one of the greatest investments, because when one baby is saved from being aborted a whole generation could be saved through that baby’s life,” Sandoval noted. “One life could equal thousands of lives saved, hundreds of generations saved.”
Look Who’s Coming! St. Clare of Roseville! https://t.co/PpHrR9cyLv pic.twitter.com/HB3y9TAIEz
— Walk For Life (@walkforlife) January 13, 2019
Anglicans for Life to Host Second Annual Symposium Before Walk! https://t.co/onRhD7O4Vo pic.twitter.com/Qw4iOTcobV
— Walk For Life (@walkforlife) January 4, 2019
Orthodox Christian Molieben at Walk for Life West Coast! https://t.co/XhfQ592Lao pic.twitter.com/LhuJ6Jc4Yw
— Walk For Life (@walkforlife) January 11, 2019
Look Who’s Coming! St. Maria Goretti, Elk Grove CA! https://t.co/VovtZNYkFh pic.twitter.com/MnigfaJIvU
— Walk For Life (@walkforlife) January 9, 2019
The weekend surrounding the event will also have numerous activities for pro-lifers, including church services, prayer vigils, dinners, a Youth Rally for Life, and Anglicans for Life’s annual Life Symposium (Anglicans for Life also hosts a conference just outside Washington, D.C. before the March for Life).
January is a popular month for major pro-life events, as the Supreme Court handed down the infamous Roe v. Wade decision on January 22, 173, forcing all 50 states to permit abortion-on-demand.
The Walk for Life predicts “tens of thousands” of participants this year, in line with estimates from previous years. Full details on participating in this year’s walk, as well as information on previous years, can be found at the Walk for Life West Coast’s official website.