A massive anti-abortion march hit Washington, DC, on Friday as tens of thousands opposed to the right to choose descended on the National Mall to protest Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1971 decision that legalized the termination of pregnancies.

Participants in the annual March for Life made their way down the National Mall in Washington DC on Friday, holding signs and chanting slogans as they approached the steps of the Supreme Court.

The event comes on the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the US Supreme Court decision that made it a constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy under some circumstances.

Despite freezing temperatures the turnout was huge, highlighting the sensitivity of the issue for the nation. But despite President Barack Obama’s commitment to women’s “reproductive freedom,” state legislatures continue to mull various restrictions to women’s rights to terminate a pregnancy.

Earlier this week, abortion opponents marked the anniversary with workshops, prayers and calls for more limits on the right to choose.

Speakers included former Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum, who told the crowd of his family’s struggles with his daughter Bella, who was born with a serious genetic condition.

Mr Santorum said his family is better off for having Bella in their lives.

With its Roe v Wade decision, the Supreme Court effectively legalised abortion in US by ruling that the termination of a pregnancy is a private matter between a woman and her doctor.

But even four decades later, public opinion polls find the nation as divided as ever on the issue, with the Roman Catholic and Evangelical churches at the forefront of the pro-life cause.

It is a position supporters see as gaining ground.

“Being pro-life is the new normal”, March for Life president Jeanne Monahan said, calling abortion “the human rights abuse of today”.

In a recent Gallup poll, 50% of respondents identified themselves as pro-life, while 41% identified as pro-choice.

Organisers said they hoped the crowd, comprised of people from across the US, surpasses last year’s record turnout of 400,000.

Among the demonstrators’ long-distance supporters is Pope Benedict XVI, who tweeted his encouragement, saying: “I join all those marching for life from afar, and pray that political leaders will protect the unborn and promote a culture of life”.

Pro-choice activists held a smaller event at the steps of the Supreme Court earlier this week.

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