Paxton Smith: Last News

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaPaxton Smith electrified abortion rights advocates when she used her 2021 high school graduation speech to decry wide-ranging abortion restrictions that were being pushed by Texas lawmakers. The valedictorian’s remarks, in which she told the audience that “there is a war on my body and a war on my rights,” quickly went viral, making Smith one of the youngest faces and most influential voices of the movement.Now, the conflict that Smith described has entered a new phase after Politico broke the news this week that the Supreme Court has prepared a majority draft opinion striking down Roe v.

Jennifer Yuma editorPaxton Smith, who made headlines in June when she gave a valedictorian address at her Texas high school and switched up her speech to call for abortion rights after Texas passed the heartbeat bill, received a standing ovation when taking the stage at Variety’s Power of Women event presented by Lifetime on Thursday.Smith was at the event on behalf of A Is 4, a non-profit that uses the arts to destigmatize abortion, as well as WRRAPS, the Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance project.The current freshman at University of Texas at Austin spoke about excelling in school to create her own path in life, only to be faced with a law that could take those choices away from her, if she were to get pregnant.

This Texas valedictorian had the best high school graduation speech ever…

Vox, the “heartbeat bill” not only bans abortion after six weeks of pregnancy but allows people to sue anyone who one of these illegal procedures. Smith's speech has exploded on TikTok, racking up more than 210,000 views. It was reposted to Twitter, where it's been viewed over 2 million times.