Standing as a witness

By Jacob Plante - Florida Catholic

Photography: Jacob Plante

MIAMI | Carrying signs with pro-life slogans and information about pregnancy resources in English and Spanish, pro-life advocates gathered for the annual Life Chain display along U.S. 1.

Organized by the Respect Life Ministry of the Archdiocese of Miami, the anti-abortion demonstration took place Oct. 5, Respect Life Sunday. The display extended from Kendall Drive to LeJeune Road from 2 to 3:30 p.m. and included participants from local Catholic parishes and schools.

“It's very important to raise awareness, to stand with life, and to stand with people who have been hurt by abortion,” said Father Jose Alfaro, pastor of St. John Neumann Parish in Kendall.

He added that it is “important to pray above all and to stand as a witness,”  because “not only the women, but also the men, the doctors and nurses are involved in this terrible tragedy that affects our country and the Western world.”

The demonstration also included students from local colleges and universities. Jazmin Casco, a Florida International University student, shared that, as a young pregnant woman, the pro-life cause is greatly important to her.

“It's not a women's rights issue, it's a human's rights issue. We're allowing way too many babies to die every year,” she said.

Casco shared that when she had her first ultrasound, she was about eight weeks pregnant and couldn't see much. However, her baby “was like a little blip on the screen, but that little blip on the screen had a very prominent head, arms and legs. So when people talk about babies just being disposable, it's really, really sad, especially because I've gotten to see my baby grow up.”

Casco is 26 weeks pregnant, and her baby girl, Esther, is due on Jan. 12, 2026.

A separate Life Chain took place along University Drive in Broward County at the same time.

For more information about the Respect Life Ministry in the Archdiocese of Miami and how to get involved, visit respectlifemiami.org.