Thousands expected to attend Richmond pro-life rally

RICHMOND, Va. -- The Virginia March for Life will take place in and around the Virginia State Capitol on Thursday.

The pro-life march is an effort by the Family Foundation, the Virginia Catholic Conference, the Virginia Society for Human Life, and others to convince Virginia lawmakers to consider the pro-life movement when voting on issues related to abortion.

“Now, like never before, Virginians who value unborn life must come together and stand against the abortion industry’s march toward making abortion legal for any reason at all stages of human development even into the moments of labor and delivery," Family Foundation President Victoria Cobb said in a prepared statement prior to the march.

Tarina Keene, the executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia, disputed those claims.

"We want to be clear that this bill [the Reproductive Health Protection Act] would not ban ultrasounds for a patient having an abortion but would instead allow healthcare providers to deem when an ultrasound is medically necessary rather than forcing one upon every patient and then requiring her to wait an additional 24-hours before receiving care," Keene said in a statement. "The Reproductive Health Protection also does not address, or even impact, abortion later in pregnancy, but solely rolls back restrictions on abortion access early in pregnancy put in place by anti-abortion politicians and respects a patient’s ability to make their own personal reproductive healthcare decisions, free from political interference. The standard of care must remain with the medical community, just like every other healthcare procedure and not with legislators."

The influx of marchers into downtown Richmond prompted police to close roads around the Virginia State Capitol.

The following roads will be closed periodically from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday, February 13:
East Broad Street between North 8^th and 14^th Streets
North 14^th Street between East Broad and East Main Streets
East Main Street between North 14^th and North 9^th Streets
North 9^th Street between East Main and Grace Streets
East Franklin Street between North 8^th and 9^th Streets
East Grace Street between North 8^th and 9^th Streets

There will also be no parking in the following locations from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.:

East Main Street between North 9^th and 14^th Streets
East Grace Street between North 8^th and 9^th Streets
East Franklin Street between North 8^th and 9^th Streets
South 2^nd Street between East Byrd Street and Browns Island Way/ 2^nd Street Connector
South 3^rd Street between East Canal and Byrd Streets
South 4^th Street between East Canal and Byrd Streets
South 5^th Street between Bragg and Tredegar Streets

The rally is scheduled between 11:45 a.m. and 12:45 p.m.