Valedictorian who blasted Texas anti-abortion bill during her grad speech says she is shocked her mic wasn t cut off - and reveals she was accosted by upset women after the ceremony who threatened to withhold her diploma
Lake Highlands High School valedictorian Paxton Smith gave an impassioned address on Texas s dehumanizing new anti-abortion bill at her graduation
Her school had approved a different speech, and Paxton admits she thought they d cut her microphone before she finished
She managed to deliver the whole speech, which she wrote in two days and had only shared with her dad and stepmom
Paxton told a crowd that it s gut-wrenching to have the autonomy over your own body taken from you
High school valedictorian takes aim at Texas abortion law in surprise graduation speech
In a surprise rewrite of her planned graduation speech, Paxton Smith, 18, of Dallas, denounced the new law, and the video was widely shared online. Paxton Smith, 18, spoke out against Texas’ new abortion law and the impact she said it would have on women, calling it a “decision that will affect the rest of their lives” that had been “made by a stranger.” Juan Figueroa / The Dallas Morning News via AP
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Paxton Smith, the valedictorian at her Dallas high school, had planned to deliver a speech about the news media at her graduation. But when she got onstage at Lake Highlands High School on Sunday, she instead used her three minutes at the podium to address what she saw as a greater issue: the new abortion law in Texas.
A Dallas high school valedictorian is going viral after she marked the end of her secondary education with a secondary, unapproved speech denouncing Texas’ recently passed abortion ban.
A Dallas high school valedictorian is going viral after she marked the end of her secondary education with a secondary, unapproved speech denouncing Texas’ recently passed abortion ban.