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'Roe v. Wade' Attorney to Speak at Duke Feb. 25

Attorney Sarah Weddington to discuss women and leadership

On the 40th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court case "Roe v. Wade," the attorney who successfully argued the case will speak at Duke University.  

On Monday, Feb. 25, lawyer, professor and women's rights advocate Sarah Weddington will deliver the 2013 Jean Fox O'Barr Distinguished Lecture. The 7 p.m. event, to be held at Reynolds Theater in the Bryan Center, is free and open to the public. Tickets will be distributed at the door.

Weddington, who argued Roe at the age of 26, will discuss women and leadership. She believes women often have key leadership skills, yet few women hold high-profile leadership titles.

In 1972, Weddington became the first woman from Austin ever elected to the Texas House of Representatives. During her three-term tenure she helped reform the Texas rape statutes, passed an equal credit bill for women, a pregnancy leave bill for Texas teachers and blocked antiabortion legislation.  She later served as general council for the U.S. Department of Agriculture under President Jimmy Carter.

The author of "A Question of Choice," Weddington has received much recognition for her work, including the 2006 International Athena Award, which is presented to individuals who have achieved professional excellence, and who have assisted women in reaching their full potential. In 2005, she began a three-year term on the Council for the American Bar Association's Section of Individual Rights and Freedoms.

The event is sponsored by the Baldwin Scholars Program, the Muglia Family, the Program in Women's Studies, the Duke Women's Center and Omega Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.