By Baptist Message staff
ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry encouraged more than 1,500 Louisiana Life March Central participants to continue to fight for the rights of the unborn, just months before the likely Supreme Court decision in a case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, that could overturn Roe v. Wade, whose 1973 decision legalized abortion.
“As we patiently wait for that decision, I will tell you that if we continue to stand with life, we will absolutely persevere,” Landry said on Saturday, Feb. 5. “We will win. We will conquer this evil. And we will see a day under which abortion is ruled illegal in this state.”
Landry commended those who have championed life, including the marchers, state legislators and Louisiana Solicitor General Liz Murrill (who has defended the state’s pro-life laws). The current 6-3 Republican-appointed majority on the Supreme Court has led many legal observers to speculate that abortion could be outlawed.
“Almost 50 years ago this crowd was much smaller,” he said. “And there was a group of men and women who recognized the travesty of the Supreme Court decision in Roe, and they moved head-first into the oncoming fire to continue to move a message in America that this was a bad, immoral and unconstitutional decision. When a war starts, there is a lot of chaos. But in each and every battle, you learn more. You learn and you seek out to understand your enemy, and try to understand how you can overcome it. When I think about where we are today, it’s hard not to pray and thank God, especially for those on whose shoulders we are standing. Because I am gonna tell you the good news is we are winning.“
Men and women, young and old, from various denominations and ethnicities joined together to make the journey from the Louisiana Christian University campus to the riverfront in Pineville on Saturday.
Other speakers were march organizer Brian Gunter, pastor of First Baptist Church, Pollock; Claire Lemoine, director of the CENLA Pregnancy Center, Alexandria; and Rick Brewer, president of LCU.
The life march was the last of five held in the state over the past few weeks.
According to Louisiana Right to Life Director of Outreach officials, a crowd of 1,000 gathered in Baton Rouge and also in Monroe/West Monroe, 650 in Shreveport and another 500 in Lake Charles in marches that took place Jan. 22-23.
Students for Life of America estimated that 150,000 pro-life supporters descended upon the nation’s capitol to show their support for the unborn during the 49th annual national March for Life Jan. 21.
Brewer told the crowd all lives matter to God, including the unborn.
“Next year will be the 50th anniversary of Roe v Wade,” he said. “I pray that our Supreme Court doesn’t allow that past decision to continue as the law of the land. Hopefully, this time next year Roe v. Wade is overturned and is yesterday’s news.”
Gunter said the crowd marched with a message of love, redemption and life. He reminded them that the most recent statistics provided by the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals showed that 7,448 babies were aborted in the state during 2020.
“We want an abortion-free Louisiana,” he said. “And so, as we gather here together today, we are standing, we are marching and we are praying for every life to be protected in our state, from the moment of conception until natural death. And we know that our God who rules and reigns over the heavens and the earth will make this happen one day soon. And we pray that even this year we would see the end of abortion in our state.”
CENLA PREGNANCY CENTER UPDATE
Lemoine shared that since opening in December 2017, the CENLA Pregnancy Center has served 1,100 women through pregnancy decision coaching (by trained advocates), free pregnancy tests, free ultrasounds, information about pregnancy options and other services.
She also announced three recent developments for the ministry:
– Abby Rose has been hired as the CENLA youth director;
– A facility in Vidalia was purchased Jan. 21 to serve as the CENLA Pregnancy Center’s third location. Once remodeled, the building will open for business, likely later this year.
– The ministry soon will offer abortion pill reversal services. Once the staff completes necessary training, the center will be listed on a national hotline that would connect CENLA Pregnancy Center staff with women seeking to reverse the effects of the first pill taken for chemical abortion.
“Growth is on the horizon and we’re just getting started,” Lemoine said. “There’s a common theme from this march today and it’s about hope and it’s about kindness and it’s about love and it’s about compassion. We do not build a culture of life with hate. We build a culture of life with love and truth. That is the message of the pregnancy center.”
