|
On the Front Lines with Terri
By Benjamin Hiegert
It is hard to sort out the impressions
from the police barricades at Woodside Hospice in Pinellas
Park, Florida. Inside the building, Terri Schiavo is slowly
and painfully dying. Outside there is a continuous flow
of people from all over the country holding vigil.
As a member of the American TFP’s delegation,
I did not know what to expect. One of the things that really
has impressed me is the outpouring of support for Terri Schiavo.
Here in front of the hospice, there are people
from all over the country. We have seen people from California,
Ohio, Kansas and Wisconsin, to name just a few states. There
have been students from Virginia’s Christendom College
and Florida’s Ave Maria University. Local activists
are also very helpful and are providing support and advice
to newcomers.
There is a continual flow of different
people who hold this 24-hour vigil. While the numbers fluctuate
according to the hour, I have witnessed as many as 350 protesters
gathered at one time – a fact the media tend to ignore.
Media reports seem to have missed this
very important point. Before coming down here, I had the
impression that the protest was the persistent action of
two or three dozen die hard protesters. Actually, there
is a hard core of about 150 protesters. However, in addition
to these protesters, there are literally hundreds if not
thousands of others who come and go.
And so protesters keep arriving. As a sign
of just how effective Church participation can be, we welcomed
the arrival of two busloads of about 150 Catholics from
Miami. The effort was sponsored by the Miami Archdiocese’s
pro-life office. We were heartened by the presence of Sergio
de Paz, the president of the Cuban-American group, Cubanos
Desterrados.
 |
| The banner of Cubanos Desterrados waves
beside the high flying signature red banner of the American
TFP. |
A second observation is the overwhelming
Catholic note of the protest. The American TFP delegation
is here with its capes and standard. We have brought a large
statue of Our Lady of Fatima and helped organized rosary
processions. Indeed, the rosary is the most common prayer.
The Blessed Sacrament was also brought here to the protest
grounds and Mass has been offered. Notably absent is local
clergy.
Many protesters here see this as a Catholic
issue and not a purely emotional one. They see the religious
and moral significance of what is happening here and are
simply acting upon the Church’s very clear teaching
about death by starvation. It is hardly the extremist portrayal
given by so many media.
Meanwhile, several members of the press
that I have spoken with do not seem to see the religious
or moral significance of this event. In fact, they knew
amazingly little about our Catholic faith. One reporter
asked me who the statue of Our Lady of Fatima portrayed.
Another asked me to explain the rosary.
 |
| People from California, Ohio,
Kansas, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania were present at the
hospice. |
The large number of press has contributed
to what has been characterized as a circus-like atmosphere
around the hospice. Sometimes there are more reporters than
protesters. The pictures I have seen on the television and
newspapers appear only to focus on those very few protesters
that appear extreme, provocative or emotional. Nothing could
be farther from the truth. What I have found are completely
normal and balanced protesters. The people I met and talked
with are truly concerned and reasonable Americans who will
not stand silently by when an innocent woman is put to death
by starvation.
While most Americans could not make
the long trip down here to protest, I am convinced that
the crowds I saw here represent a large number of Americans
afflicted by the prolonged agony of Terri Schiavo. I am
also convinced that our prayers here are united with the
prayers of so many all over the country asking not only
for the life of one innocent woman but asking for an end
to the culture of death that has so devastated our society.
|
