by Rio Scarcelli | staff writer
Jan. 20, 2022
Spiritan Campus Ministries and Consistent Ethic of Life are inviting Duquesne students to an advocacy experience at the 2022 March for Life in Washington, D.C. The trip will be on Friday, Jan. 21 with buses departing at 5:15 a.m. and returning at 10 p.m.
To register for the event, students can email Campus Minister Linda Donovan at donovanl@duq.edu or scan the QR code below to sign up. The registry will continue until Thursday, Jan. 20.
Donovan has done work as an advisor to the CEL to provide a comfortable outlet for students’ opinions in their three-step model: education, advocacy and outreach.
“I believe that we need to advocate for a consistent ethic of life that includes all of the issues from natural conception to natural death. I think advocacy is important and we all deserve to have our voice heard. I believe the March for Life is a good place for that to happen,” she said.
Sophomore Grace Reitz, who is attending the event, shared her opinions on what she feels the climate of the march will be like.
“I think this march will be interesting because of the political environment in the country right now. From my experience, there are not many protestors that come to cause chaos. I think it will be tense, but honestly, I think it will be very similar to the marches of past years.”
Reitz is also a member of the CEL and has gotten the opportunity to discuss issues with abortion laws like the Gestational Age Act and SB8.
CEL’s goal concerns issues of human dignity with recent discussions being centered around abortion, human trafficking, government shutdown and euthanasia. For these controversial topics, Donovan emphasizes the importance of respecting the opinions and choices of others.
“When someone has an adverse opinion, it is important to engage in dialogue because everyone is coming from different life experiences that form different views. Getting inside of a person’s reason for a specific opinion creates a better environment than having an argument and walking away,” she said.
Reitz agreed that creating an open dialogue and not imposing opinions onto someone else is a key to having conversations on controversial topics.
“I feel that the opinions directed toward the pro-life community are sometimes harsh, but that makes sense considering they come from those who have an opposing viewpoint. To combat the things that come toward us we just explain what the facts are and work to educate people,” Reitz said.
In providing education for opinions of all backgrounds, the CEL also coordinates outreach to organizations that help women deal with unwanted pregnancies. The group encourages others to voice their thoughts through advocacy trips like March for Life.
Reitz encouraged those going to Washington, D.C. to “be kind to those around you.”
