By Interim Staff

The organizers of the March for Life in Washington D.C., announced that the massive annual gathering was to be limited to a select number of pro-life leaders who were going to be invited to demonstrate in person, with the masses being asked to join the event online.

“The protection of all of those who participate in the annual March, as well as the many law enforcement personnel and others who work tirelessly each year to ensure a safe and peaceful event, is a top priority of the March for Life,” MFL president Jeanne Mancini said in a press release. “In light of the fact that we are in the midst of a pandemic which may be peaking, and in view of the heightened pressures that law enforcement officers and others are currently facing in and around the Capitol, this year’s March for Life will look different.”

It is the first time since 1974 after the Roe v. Wade decision came down from the U.S. Supreme Court that a large March did not take place in the American capital.

The March was held a week later than usual because of the inauguration on Jan. 20. The March for Life organization made the announcement Jan. 15, after the National Park Service said it was closing the National Mall through inauguration day on Jan. 20 due to security concerns following the Jan. 6 brouhaha at the U.S. Capitol.

The March for Life statement said: “The protection of all of those who participate in the annual March, as well as the many law enforcement personnel and others who work tirelessly each year to ensure a safe and peaceful event, is a top priority of the March for Life.

A select number of pro-life leaders would “represent pro-life Americans everywhere,” said Mancini, inviting all pro-lifers to join in the March virtually from home. No program had been announced when The Interim went to press, nor was the list of pro-life leaders made public.

In one of his last official acts as president, Donald Trump issued an executive order naming historical figures to be honoured in a new National Garden of American heroes, and one of the honourees was Nellie Gray, founder of the March for Life. Last year, Trump became the first sitting president to address the March for Life in person.