Thousands attend March for Life, pro-choice demonstrations on Parliament Hill
Thousands of people gathered on Parliament Hill and marched through downtown Ottawa today as part of the March for Life rally.
The annual anti-abortion rally comes amid renewed attention on the issue in Canada and the United States following the leaked U.S. Supreme Court document on Roe v. Wade.
"We are here today because we think abortion is wrong, we think it takes a human life," said Valerie Luetke.
"I felt empowered with everybody around and we have to speak for the unborn child," Cecile Beaudoin said.
The March for Life began with a rally on Parliament Hill, followed by a march through Centretown.
"We love life and that's what we teach our children and we teach them to respect all lives," Mary Anne Brown said.
On Wellington Street, hundreds of counter-protesters attended a rally hosted by Planned Parenthood Ottawa. Women at the pro-choice rally held signs saying, "Keep your laws off my body" and "my body, my choice."
"The fact that this is still a debate and that this is still an issue. That we are still having to stand up against people who think that people should not have rights and people should not have bodily autonomy is just absurd," said Mackenzie Cielen-Gough.
Coun. Jeff Leiper and federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh attended the counter-protest. Ottawa Vanier Liberal candidate Lucille Collard posted a photo on Twitter saying, “It's a women's right to choose. It's as simple as that."
This year's annual March for Life event comes after the leaked U.S. Supreme Court document suggested a majority of justices were prepared to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that allowed abortion to be legal in the United States.
"Concerned isn't the word," said Kate Headley, Planned Parenthood Ottawa Board member, while at the counter-protest. "It's scared, it's terrified, it's disgusting."
"We can't let what is going on in the United States creep up into Canada. We really need to solidify the support for abortion as healthcare here so we can't let that erode away," Charlotte Akin said.
Peter Baklinski of the Campaign Life Coalition told reporters outside the Supreme Court of Canada on Wednesday that the leaked U.S. Supreme Court document has made the issue of abortion "suddenly explode" in Canada.
The National March for Life is held in May to mark the "Day of Infamy," according to the National March for Life website. "When the 1969 omnibus bill passed under Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, decriminalizing abortion."
The first March for Life was held in 1998.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING NEWS Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
Residents of northern Alberta First Nation told to shelter in place
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Metro Vancouver mayors call for serial killer Robert Pickton to be denied parole
A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for notorious B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, and reassess the parole and sentencing system for 'prolific offenders and mass murderers.'