When I was invited to go back to Belgium to speak and participate in the 3rd annual March for Life in the heart of the European Capital, I never imagined I would also walk in a march supporting abortion. I know you must be scratching your head right now trying to figure out why in the world I would march in support of abortion rights, I know my friend Dries from Belgium was trying to figure this out when he saw me walking with them.
I was so intrigued by what I saw when I arrived at the pro-abortion march that I simply had to walk along with them to understand what I was witnessing. The very fact that this march took place was actually a testimony to the young pro-lifers like Dries who have been working so hard to build up the March for Life that would take place the next day.
The pro-life March for Life was conceived, organized and run not by seasoned pro-lifers, but by a group of young people who have such a passion for their country and for Europe that they could no longer sit in silence. Dries, along with Liesbeth, Kris, Michele, Antony, the Andre Dumont sisters and so many other European youth have spent the past couple of years building a pro-life march that has grown from just over 1,500 the first year to well over 4,000 the third year.
The work of these amazing young pro-lifers has not only sparked a passion for pro-life in Belgium, it has also put a good scare into the hearts of those who support abortion. This fear became very apparent to me as I walked along side this pro-abortion march; it was a fear of how many young people are taking a stand against child killing.
While the first thing I noticed when I got to the pro-abortion march was the array of Socialist Party flags and banners, it also became very apparent to me that this was an older crowd. I started to look into the eyes of so many aging women who were stuck on the idea that abortion was something that set women free instead of the truth that in actually enslaves women to this culture of death.
It reminded me of an article I read a couple of years back from a prominent pro-abortion leader in America about getting off a train in Washington, DC and realizing how many young people were taking a stand for life at our March for Life. The difference was that I got out of a taxi and noticed how old the crowd was at this march for death. 
I walked to the end of the March taking photos, looking at the anger and hatred in faces and just watching these people trying to grasp why anyone would want to stand for killing babies in this day and age. While I can’t understand exactly why they stand for this bloodshed, do understand one thing in common with them. We both knew that this so called right, the right to abortion is in danger and they are grasping on to this the same way that people might have thought that segregation and slavery would always be the norm. They know that this false truth is in danger and this next generation is not buying it.
As we got to the end of the pro-abortion march I realized I was standing in the spot where I would actually begin the March for Life the next day. I stood there and looked out over the city and smiled, as I knew that the crowd for the March for Life would be more than double the size and half the age.
I arrived early the next morning and began to help get things prepared for the pro-life march. We swept the stairs and plaza we were meeting, set up banners, blew up balloons and passed out fliers to passersby. As I was pushing the broom I looked around me and almost all of those working beside me were students or people under 30. These were not just the volunteers who were setting up, but they also happened to be the leaders of the march.
March for Life
As the sun got warmer the crowd got larger and thousands of young people started filling that plaza with an excitement and passion that made me smile and brought tears to my eyes. I remember one young teen girl in particular who was so excited for every speaker that I could not help but be moved by her passion.
Another amazing thing was seeing youth that I knew from other countries starting to fill into the crowd. I saw groups from Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and so many other countries all coming together in unity to stand for life in Europe. It was such a beautiful site, I was so moved honored to be there as a part of this day.
We ended the March at Belgium’s equivalent of the Supreme Court where we gathered for a few more speeches and testimonies. I was one of the last to speak that day and I just gave a brief message. I told them I was not here as an American; that we were not here as any nationality but there as humans. I said today we are all one people, human people standing against the killing of human people.
I am always so amazed by how many people make their way up to thank me for coming to their country to help them take a stand. I tell them that we are all brothers and sisters and in Christ we can stand together and win this battle.
This is why I walked in two opposing marches last week in Brussels, Belgium. I wanted to understand and experience what makes each group come out and walk. In one case it is a fear of losing what they think is so important to women and in the other case it is a hope of ending what we know is destroying women and true women’s rights.
March for Life
As I look back at the day I walked with the pro-abortion march I weep for those women whose faces I looked into. I weep, as I know the lies they have come to know as truths and the pain that must be buried deep inside many of them. I pray for them as I know there is only one thing that can truly give them peace in life and that is the Hope of Christ. Please join me in prayer today for all of those souls who are in such need of the Hope we have in Jesus. Especially as we enter into Holy Week approaching Easter Sunday where we will jubilantly exclaim; He is risen!
March for Life
LifeNews.com Note: Bryan Kemper is the youth director for Priests for Life. He is the author of Social Justice Begins In The Womb.
