News

It's cold and snowing in D.C. But the March for Life goes on — after Roe ends

Published

2 years ago

January 19, 2024

Press Room

It's cold and snowing in D.C. But the March for Life goes on — after Roe ends

People holding the March for Life banner pause as they march past the Supreme Court, Friday in Washington, D.C.

Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

hide caption

toggle caption

Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

People holding the March for Life banner pause as they march past the Supreme Court, Friday in Washington, D.C.

Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

Thousands of anti-abortion activists met Friday on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., for the 51st annual March for Life — the second such rally since the end of Roe v. Wade in America.

Marchers young and old from across the country braved dropping temps — around 30 degrees Fahrenheit by early afternoon — and, at times, heavy snowfall to carry signs and handmade posters with anti-abortion slogans on a route that brought them passed the U.S. Capitol building and the Supreme Court.

It was there that judges in 2022 overturned Roe v. Wade in a ruling that ended federal protection for abortion access. While last year’s March for Life event served as more of a victory lap after that decision, organizers and marchers came to D.C. this year with a renewed focus on what’s next for their cause. This as the country is months away from a presidential election in which abortion issues will likely weigh heavily for voters.

“We are not done. We will keep marching every January at the national level, as well as in our states, until our nation’s laws reflect the basic truth that all human life is created equal and is worthy of protection,” said March for Life president Jeanne Mancini during a rally before marchers paraded through downtown D.C.

“We will march until abortion is unthinkable,” Mancini said. It’s a phrase that was often repeated by other speakers and rallygoers.

And that means turning attention to changing state laws to further restrict abortion access, event organizers and other speakers indicated.

When Roe was overturned, the decision regarding abortion access fell to respective states. Since then, more than a dozen states have enacted total or near-total abortion bans. Others are seeing their restrictive policies challenged in court.

Supreme Court allows Idaho abortion ban to be enacted, first such ruling since Dobbs

Marchers like Kathy Johnston, who traveled to D.C. from Ohio, think the Dobbs decision didn’t go far enough.

“But I think that we were all aware that it was just going to move it from a national level to a state level and that the fight wasn’t done,” she said, adding that the issue over abortion access is now rightly placed at the state level.

An anti-abortion activist uses a megaphone during the annual March for Life at Capitol Hill on Friday in Washington, D.C.

Mariam Zuhaib/AP

hide caption

toggle caption

Mariam Zuhaib/AP

An anti-abortion activist uses a megaphone during the annual March for Life at Capitol Hill on Friday in Washington, D.C.

Mariam Zuhaib/AP

In the aftermath of the Supreme Court overturning the constitutional right to abortion, there’s also been a concerted effort among abortion rights activists to take the issue directly to voters via ballot initiatives and other measures to enshrine protections in state law.

States like Ohio have put abortion rights on the ballot for voters to decide. In instances where this has happened, anti-abortion advocates have lost. Last November, Ohio voters approved an amendment to their state constitution to guarantee the right to abortion and other reproductive rights.

This is why anti-abortion activists are still gearing up for a “long, long struggle” to stop abortion, said marcher Leszek Syski, from Maryland, who was attending his 50th March for Life rally.

“Ultimately, we don’t want to just make abortion illegal,” he said. “We want to make an unthinkable.”

Anti-abortion activists attend the annual March for Life in front of the Supreme Court on Friday in Washington.

Mariam Zuhaib/AP

hide caption

toggle caption

Mariam Zuhaib/AP

Anti-abortion activists attend the annual March for Life in front of the Supreme Court on Friday in Washington.

Mariam Zuhaib/AP

Other March for Life participants, like Julie Womer, from Iowa, still believes action from the federal government to restrict abortion across the board is the ideal future for anti-abortion supporters like herself.

“It would be great if life was protected at a national level, and each state didn’t have to figure it out on their own,” Womer said. “But I think in the time being, if states are able to protect life in their state, that’s a big step forward as well.”

News

Satellite images provide view inside Iran at war

Published

5 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Satellite images provide view inside Iran at war

Smoke rises over Konarak naval base in southern Iran on Sunday. The base was one of hundreds of targets of U.S. and Israeli forces throughout the country.

Planet Labs PBC

hide caption

toggle caption

Planet Labs PBC

Commercial satellite images are providing a unique look at the extent of damage being done to Iran’s military facilities across the country.

The U.S. and Israeli military campaign opened with a daytime attack that struck Iranian leadership in central Tehran. Smoke was still visible rising from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s compound following the attack that killed the supreme leader.

An image by the company Airbus taken on Saturday shows the aftermath of an Israeli strike on Iran’s Leadership House in central Tehran. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the opening wave of attacks.

Pléiades Neo (c) Airbus DS 2026

Advertisement

hide caption

toggle caption

Pléiades Neo (c) Airbus DS 2026

Israel and the U.S. have gone on to strike targets across the country. Reports on social media indicate that there have been numerous military bases and compounds attacked all over Iran, and Iran has responded with attacks throughout the Middle East.

U.S. forces have also been striking at Iran’s navy. In a post on his social media platform, President Trump said that he had been briefed that U.S. forces had sunk nine Iranian naval vessels. U.S. Central Command did not immediately confirm that number but it did say it had struck an Iranian warship in port.

An image captured on February 28 shows a ship burning at Iran's naval base at Konarak.

An image captured on Saturday shows a ship burning at Iran’s naval base at Konarak.

hide caption

toggle caption

Numerous satellite images show burning vessels at Konarak naval base in southern Iran. Images also show damage to a nearby airbase where hardened hangers were struck by precision munitions.

Hardened aircraft shelters at Konarak airbase were struck with precision munitions.

hide caption

toggle caption

And there was extensive damage at a drone base in the same area. Iran has launched numerous drones and missiles toward Israel and U.S. military installations in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. Many drones have been intercepted but videos on social media show that some have evaded air defenses and caused damage in nearby Gulf countries. In Dubai, debris from an Iranian drone damaged the iconic Burj Al Arab, according to a statement from Dubai’s government.

Buildings at an Iranian drone base at Konarak were destroyed in the strikes.

hide caption

toggle caption

Iran’s most powerful weapons are its long-range missiles. The Iranian Revolutionary Guards have hidden the missiles deep inside mountain tunnels. Images taken Sunday in the mountains of northern Iran indicate that some of those tunnels were hit in a wave of strikes.

Following Khamenei’s death, Iran declared 40 days of mourning. Satellite images showed mourners gathering in Tehran’s Enghelab square on Sunday.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told NPR on Sunday that Iran will continue to fight “foreign aggression, foreign domination.”

A White House official told NPR that Trump plans to talk to Iran’s interim leadership “eventually,” but that for now, U.S. operations continue in the region “unabated.”

A large crowd of mourners fill Enghelab Square in Tehran on Sunday, following the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike.

hide caption

toggle caption

News

Video: What the Texas Primary Battle Means for the Midterms

Published

15 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Video: What the Texas Primary Battle Means for the Midterms

new video loaded: What the Texas Primary Battle Means for the Midterms

The first battle of the midterm elections will be the U.S. Senate primary in Texas. Our Texas bureau chief, David Goodman, explains why Democrats and Republicans across the U.S. are watching closely to see what happens in the state.

By J. David Goodman, Alexandra Ostasiewicz, June Kim and Luke Piotrowski

March 1, 2026

News

Mass shooting at Austin, Texas bar leaves at least 3 dead, 14 wounded, authorities say

Published

18 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Mass shooting at Austin, Texas bar leaves at least 3 dead, 14 wounded, authorities say

Gunfire rang out at a bar in Austin, Texas, early Sunday and at least three people were killed, the city’s police chief said.

Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis told reporters the shooter was killed by officers at the scene.

Fourteen others were hospitalized and three were in critical condition, Austin-Travis County EMS Chief Robert Luckritz said.

“We received a call at 1:39 a.m. and within 57 seconds, the first paramedics and officers were on scene actively treating the patients,” Luckritz said.

There was no initial word on the shooter’s identity or motive.

An Austin police officer guards the scene on West 6th Street at West Avenue after a shooting on Sunday, March 1, 2026, in Austin, Texas.

Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP

Davis noted how fortunate it was that there was a heavy police presence in Austin’s entertainment district at the time, enabling officers to respond quickly as bars were closing.

“Officers immediately transitioned … and were faced with the individual with a gun,” Davis said. “Three of our officers returned fire, killing the suspect.”

She called the shooting a “tragic, tragic” incident.