WASHINGTON - April 23 - NARAL Pro-Choice America, the nation's leading advocate for a woman's right to choose and right to privacy, received nearly 4,000 entries for the "Ultimate Pro-Choice Meetup" in the first two days following its announcement. The legions of pro-choice supporters across the country who are unable to travel to the historic March for Women's Lives on April 25 can make their voices heard through NARAL Pro-Choice America's website and on-the-Mall technology.

Messages sent in from supporters at home will be displayed on the Mall and online during the event, expanding the already strong presence expected at the March. The photos and email messages received so far reflect support for the marchers, hope for the future of choice, and a commitment to preventing anti-choice leaders from further eroding a woman's right to choose.

NARAL Pro-Choice America President Kate Michelman said, "The response has been overwhelming. Our goal was always to bring an unprecedented number of marchers to Washington, DC, and now with the use of this technology, we can enable even more pro-choice Americans to be a part of this powerful event. On Sunday, an unprecedented number of pro-choice Americans will be standing in President Bush's backyard and in their own living rooms, united and determined to show that we decide, not them."

"Our march on Washington flows into the stream of marches that have changed history and expanded liberties in this country; meanwhile, we are launching the first-ever nationwide "virtual" march," said Michelman.

Some messages include:

"Thank you for carrying the flag for all of us who can't make it but whose hearts (and) minds are right up there with you. We're all marching one way or the other -- for freedom of choice, freedom of family planning, freedom to pursue life, liberty and happiness." "I so wish I could be at the march, but I'm expecting my first child any day now. Thank you for helping to make sure that he can grow up in a world where women have the right to choose and make their own decisions about their bodies!"

"Thanks for being there to march for me! Our cause is vital for all Americans' rights! We can't allow Bush to return us to the days when decisions about our bodies were made by others -- we have the right to make our own choices!"

"Unfortunately, I do not have the resources to make it to the march. But I am glad that you will be there marching for the rights of women in America and throughout the world, marching for the rights of my granddaughter newly born, marching to lead this country forward not backward in a return to discrimination and oppression."

These efforts build upon a host of successful online activist efforts by NARAL Pro-Choice America leading up to the March. The members of the group's online Choice Action Network have recruited tens of thousands of marchers with messages featuring Flash animation, video clips, and other cutting-edge tactics. An online contest to design an official poster for the March drew hundreds of entries. NARAL Pro-Choice America also co-produced a video message with Howard Dean and Kate Michelman, which the former presidential candidate emailed to his list of nearly 700,000 supporters.

The March for Women's Lives, a historic gathering of pro- choice Americans, will take place this Sunday, April 25 on the National Mall in Washington, DC. It is sponsored by NARAL Pro- Choice America, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Black Women's Health Imperative, Feminist Majority, the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, the National Organization for Women, and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

###