Mike Schwartz (activist)

  1. Home
  2. Wiki

Michael Schwartz (1950 – February 3, 2013) was an American leader in the United States anti-abortion movement A co-founder of the March for Life, and a founding chairman of the Planned Parenthood watchdog organization, Life Decisions International. In 1995, he was named executive director of the House Family, Congressional Caucus. He also worked as a vice president for Concerned Women for America.[1] He was a member of Operation Rescue and chief of staff to Senator Tom Coburn until 2000, and from 2004 to 2012.

In November 2012, Schwartz was no longer able to fulfill his duties because of his advancing illness. Senator Tom Coburn paid tribute to Schwartz on the Senate floor as "one of the kindest, gentlest people anyone has ever met".[2]l

Activism

[edit]
St. Stephen Martyr Church DC
Schwartz (fourth from right) listening to L Brent Bozell Jr speak at the rally at GW Circle on June 6, 1970

Schwartz became a member of the Sons of Thunder (a name chosen in reference to the Gospel of Mark 3:14-19)[3] at the University of Dallas in 1969. He traveled to DC from Texas with other members of the Sons of Thunder at the first Pro-Life March in Washington, DC on June 6, 1970. This activism was not initiated by Nellie Gray, but by the brother-in-law of William F. Buckley and the founding editor of Triumph, a convert to the Roman Catholic faith, L. Brent Bozell Jr., who launched the magazine as the "Catholic version" of his brother-in-law's Conservative political publication, the National Review.

Mike says Triumph, "became the seedbed for the pro-life movement of the 1960s." He and his Triumph-enthused fellow students at the University of Dallas formed the Sons of Thunder, one of the first pro-life groups in America. They promptly occupied a Planned Parenthood facility in Dallas and promptly got arrested. For his whole professional life, Mike was at the center of all the most important anti-abortion activities. With Nellie Gray and others, he founded what became the March for Life.

— The Catholic Thing[4]

When the US Catholic bishops on April 22, 1970 officially[5] avoided active leadership in dealing with the incremental legalization of abortion in California, New York, and Washington, DC, L. Brent Bozell Jr. announced that, as the Second Vatican Council, or Vatican II, had recommended, it was time for some of the laity to initiate serious Catholic Action. Bozell scheduled his Catholic Action for June 6, 1970. Students, like Schwartz's group from Dallas, Triumph staff and contributing writers, together with families and subscribers from the Washington Metro area, New England and various other states came to Washington, DC and met at St. Stephen Catholic Church on Pennsylvania Avenue for mass, then gathered on George Washington Circle for a rally.

Biography

[edit]

Schwartz's upbringing in Philadelphia was marked by socioeconomic challenges and familial instability: "My father was a violent alcoholic who was unfaithful and physically abusive toward my mother. I have vivid memories of his aggression, and he often introduced me to his partners. By the age of seven, I was already driving with him to their homes. His actions became a defining example of the kind of man I was determined not to become."[citation needed]

This turbulent upbringing played a crucial role in shaping his faith: "I believe I have been given many opportunities; my life has been truly blessed." His ideological outlook was likely influenced when a friend introduced him to the National Review, which resonated with his conservative beliefs. This proved to be a turning point, leading him to become a charter subscriber and solidifying his dedication to conservative thought.[4]

In 2011, Schwartz received a diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. He died on February 3, 2013, surrounded by his wife, children, and grandchildren.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Michael Schwartz". The Washington Post. July 26, 2012. Archived from the original on February 25, 2015. Retrieved 2013-02-06.
  2. ^ "Dr. Coburn Gives Tribute to his Chief of Staff, Michael Schwartz". Youtube. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  3. ^ "James & John are known as Sons of Thunder". thecatholiccommentator.org. 2015-02-24. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
  4. ^ a b "The Catholic Thing". thecatholicthing.org. 2013-02-08. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
  5. ^ "NCCB Statement on Abortion". priestsforlife.org. 1970-04-22. Retrieved 2015-02-24.