She says she can't wait to talk about the abortion issue in class. And, no doubt, the First Amendment as well.
Tiny raindrops start pelting the tables, the early pitter-patter tap dance that announces a more thorough soaking to come. Strassner cradles the legal pad e-mail list and shuttles it into her backpack. Saenz tries to get the others to fan out in the thinning crowds. "If one of y'all is brave enough to go over there," he points to the other side of the fountain, "because we're not quite getting the traffic over here." He coaches them on how to do it: "Just say, 'Hey, I'm involved in this group -- take a look at this.' " He mimes handing out a flyer and then hustles off to feed change to the parking meter.
Photos Courtesy Justice For All
The calm before the storm? The exhibit first arrived in
March 2001.
Courtesy Pro-Life Cougars
Jonathan Saenz stands behind the barricades in
September 2002.
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All around them, through the sprinkle of rain, the neighboring tables have packed up and headed home. Kappa Delta Phi: gone. The badminton club: gone. Three tables to their left and 11 to their right have emptied out, now slick with rainwater instead of flyers and photos to sell you on all the good times had last year. Co-chair Mary-Margaret Buchanan finally comes by, having just finished class. She's wearing an "Army" T-shirt. She takes a stack of flyers and wades out into the crowd. When Saenz comes back, he sees her and laughs a little.
"That's funny -- 'God's army,' " he says. "She's one of the troops." A few kids plow by -- one with a "Free Yayo" T-shirt and another with several face piercings. Saenz tries to get them to take a flyer. In their recruiting, the Pro-Life Cougars don't discriminate. "I think anyone can be reached," Saenz says. He jokes about how people avoid making eye contact, though. At this point, they're pretty much sticking it out all alone. The rain has let up some, but the pavement still smells of a hot, wet summer.
Tumlinson watches the clock: "We've got about eight minutes left." Buchanan cozies up to speeding students and walks alongside them, talking up the group. Saenz plays nose tackle to her cornerback, digging in right in the middle of the sidewalk, trying to nab those who rush by. A crack of thunder rolls across the sky as the clock nears 1 p.m.
"Hurray! Hurray -- 75!" Buchanan exclaims, walking back over to the table. They've handed out 75 flyers for the day. A campus corner, once bustling, is now empty.
"Let's say a prayer real quick," Saenz proposes. The four of them gather in a small circle. "Dear Lord, thank you so much for bringing these people together…" And so the Pro-Life Cougars begin another year.
