My friend Bradley J. Birzer–a Notre Dame grad and a Hillsdale College prof–sends the following report via email:

Early Sunday morning, my oldest daughter (age 8) and I drove to Notre Dame to attend the outdoor protest mass and rally on the South Quad of the campus. Twenty-eight years ago to the day, I had watched Ronald Reagan deliver his famous “West will transcend communism” speech to the class of 1981. Nineteenth years ago, this month, I attended my own graduation ceremonies under the Golden Dome.
Not only was yesterday’s experience quite different from my earlier ND experiences, but it was also quite different from how the New York Times reported the day. We witnessed no radicals, no arrests, and no graphic pictures of aborted fetuses on our part of the campus. Much to our surprise, a massive screen greeted us, booming professional pro-Catholic commercials, accompanied by a throbbing beat and deep-voiced narrator. Everywhere we saw concerned and respectful families, children, students. We saw many who understand the importance of Notre Dame for the future of American Catholicism, education, and culture.
With readings from St. John, the outdoor mass set the tone for the protest. Indeed, the “protestors” were nothing short of respectful. Less than a minute before the rally began, Air Force One flew directly over the Golden Dome. The vast majority of the nearly 1,000 (the New York Times incorrectly reported it as “a subdued crowd of perhaps a few hundred”) who had just attended mass on the same spot, looked up in silence as the impressive jet descended. One man yelled, “Obama, go home.” But, only one man, from what I could tell.
Without exception, my daughter and I saw and heard nothing but words and actions of love. Neither the out-of-control nuts nor the subdued here. Instead, we stood only with those passionately concerned about those who claim to lead us.