March for Women's Lives, April 25, 2004, Washington, D.C. - Sarah Weddington was a featured speaker. Over a million people marched.

January 20, 2005

Looking back at 2004…..

One of my New Year’s resolution is to update my web site more frequently. I had trouble starting because last year’s unfortunate election looms so large I thought, “What can I write about? People don’t want to hear my doomsday scenarios about the impact of the election on reproductive rights, a larger variety of women’s issues, national policies, and our international relationships.” But I’m finally up off the figurative floor and dusting myself off to contribute in whatever ways I can to the ongoing effort to preserve our values and ideals. And in examining my 2004 calendar, I discovered many wonderful moments to share.

Foreign Travel. China. Travel is something that makes me “light up”. In May I was a keynote speaker for All-China Women’s Federation conferences in Beijing and Shanghai. In addition, I traveled to Xian to see the terracotta army, on a Yangtze River cruise to see the valley that will soon be flooded, and the huge hydroelectric dam nearing completion. I was not in China since l977; the contrasts were dramatic. I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to see aspects of the old and the new China.

D.C. and the April 25th March for Women’s Lives. I’ve given “millions” of speeches, but one speech far-and-away gets the “biggest audience” award. That was The March for Women’s Lives in April. The variety of people, the fabulous weather, the common commitment: it was an unforgettable thrill to speak to over a million people. The audience spread as far as the eye could see from the speaker’s platform by the Capitol to the Washington Monument. It was an energizing weekend. An added plus was seeing so many friends from all over the country. A special thrill was visiting at her home with Sen. Diane Feinstein (I have two of her drawings, appreciation gifts after speaking at a campaign fundraising event a few years ago.) Among many other events was one at House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi’s, and a BYOP brunch sponsored by Houston Planned Parenthood (What, you ask, is “BYOP”? Now I know it means “Bring Your Own Protein”). The brunch was followed by a rally with speakers Ann Richards, Molly Ivins – and me.

Special U.S. Travel: the Most Powerful Women’s Summit. US travel involved exciting events and/or friends. I attended, with about 100 other women, Fortune magazine’s Most Powerful Women’s Summit. Other participants included Gloria Feldt (President of National Planned Parenthood), lots of business notables and Bush administration officials, Ariana Huffington and Lesley Stahl. The first-night entertainment was Cyndi Lauper (of “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” fame) who sang and talked about having her first child at age 44 and the exercises she does to stay in shape for her very active performances. The program participants were especially thoughtful and informative.

My favorite Lesley Stahl story was about her first time on television. It was a talk show, she was the only female participant, and the other commentators weren’t giving her a chance to say anything. Finally the network got so many complaints about the way she was being treated that "word came down" to allow Lesley to talk. When the next program started, the moderator turned to Lesley and said, "What is the gossip about (I think it was Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers)?" Stahl was so incensed about being asked a gossip question that she didn’t say anything; finally, after a long period of "dead air", she said something, but not something she was proud of. She was thinking of quitting but first called home to get her parents’ reaction. Her father said her performance was wonderful. She told him to "get real"; he responded with how proud he was of her and how much he loved her. She cut him off: "If you can’t be honest with me, put Mother on." "I can't," he said, "she’s too upset to talk."

Kerry-Edwards Campaign. I went all-out for the ticket; I gave speeches in various towns and for various pro-choice groups and candidates. The last week of the campaign I was in the "battleground state" of New Mexico to work and be at the rally in the Santa Fe Plaza with Teresa Heinz Kerry and Bill Clinton. It was a crisp fall day packed with excitement and hundreds of enthusiastic people. In politics it’s often a game to get the best tickets for events. I started the day with a White ticket (back of the Plaza); then got a Red ticket (middle Plaza); and by noon had a PURPLE ticket, the most desirable color and for the front-of-the-Plaza spots. Luckily I “knew people who knew people”. I have known Clinton for years and was able to get his attention as he “walked the line” afterwards. He was kind enough to stop for a few minutes to visit. He looked good, although I heard that he was traveling with a doctor “just to be safe”. He told me that he thought we could win if we emphasized “real security” and he talked about that. Of course, I wish we had won.

A Wonderful Surprise. When I was in California speaking for Planned Parenthood I learned that a generous couple had made a contribution to a new clinic being built and designated that it be called the “Sarah Weddington Center”. I have a photo of it on the bookshelf across from my desk. I look at it and think with gratitude of people who do so much to support the values of reproductive health and freedom that are my passion.

Awards. The most unusual award I received is symbolized by a purple child’s cowboy boot covered, from the ankle up, in glitter and fancy designs of buttons and pieces of ribbon and mounted on a stand. It was presented by the Texas Women’s Chamber of Commerce and is called the Purple Boot Award. It is given annually to an outstanding WWKB – or Woman Who Kicks Butt.

The Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles presented me the Courage Award and has since nominated me for the Margaret Brent Award given by the American Bar Association’s Commission on Women in the Profession. There are various reasons that I might not be selected, but it won’t be because I had less than stellar letters of recommendation. For example, former President Jimmy Carter and former Secretary of Education Shirley Hufstedler were two of them. Seattle lawyer Llew Pritchard has been a great help. In a few months I will be at Berkeley to receive The Public Health Hero award from its School of Public Health. Chris Edley, the new dean of the Boalt Hall School of Law, will introduce me; I remember him warmly from our Carter days.

Attending a Carter Wedding. One of the weddings I attended united Brendan Murphy and Sarah Carter, President and Mrs. Carter’s granddaughter and the daughter of Jack Carter and Judy Carter-Thompson. It was a joy to visit with people I had worked with in D.C. during the Carter years, to watch a presidential debate as part of the rehearsal dinner at a pizza parlor, and to visit with Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter at the after-wedding dinner. The newlyweds are researchers in a biological field; they are as nice as they are bright. The Carters were about to leave for Mexico to spend a week building for Habitat for Humanity and then go to Mozambique to observe elections. The conversation reminded me again of a friend’s remark that “Jimmy Carter is the only President who has used the presidency as a stepping stone to doing more important things.” Rosalynn Carter has been his partner in all that he has done. I greatly admire each of them.

Law-Related. Law-related events include being elected to the Council of the Individual Rights and Responsibilities Section of the American Bar Association, speaking to the Family Law Section of the ABA, speaking to events for new associates for Mayer Brown, Roe and Maw in New York City and for Orrick, Harrington & Sutcliffe in San Francisco, and speaking to the Collaborative Law convention in Texas. The annual ABA meeting in August in Atlanta was an unexpected source of solace. Sometimes I get discouraged about various criticisms of Roe v. Wade. A major focus of the ABA meeting was the 50th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. I consider that decision sacrosanct, so I was astonished by the extent of criticism being leveled at it. It reminded me that anything important will be criticized, and it caused me to contemplate the 50th anniversary of Roe and wonder what the status will be in 2023.

Cancer-Related. My doctor still says that I am NED, i.e. that he can find no evidence of disease. Cancer-related speeches, events, and writing included US Oncology in Houston and Arizona, Breast Cancer Action (an advocacy group out of California), and the Breast Cancer Resource Center of Austin. I also wrote an article for CURE magazine.

Travel, Travel…and more Travel for university and college speeches. I traveled the US speaking at higher education institutions in states including California, Iowa, New Jersey, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Oregon, New York, Texas, Mississippi, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Missouri, Tennessee, Nebraska, Maine, and probably others I am not thinking of. At Vanderbilt Law School a new mural by Bill Myers has been painted of major moments in civil rights issues; I was pleased to be included. I enjoy visiting with students and answering questions…except that I don’t want to do so much of it in ’05. Keppler Associates continues to be the Speaker’s Agency that I work with.

Enjoyable Experiences Associated with Speech Travel. I was in Oregon to speak to Voices, Inc. and enjoyed seeing the Asian Gardens in peak fall-leaf color, misty mystery conditions and with only two other people there. Fabulous. I had a great time in San Francisco (after speaking to the NARAL Power of Choice Breakfast in Palo Alto) with Susan Hyatt (whose husband Joel is working with Al Gore on a new channel aiming at young adults) exploring the new Asian Museum, which is exquisite. Another speaker at the University of Illinois Biennial Conference in Champagne was the Today Show’s Soledad O’Brien. She was staying at the same hotel, was in the preparation room at the same time, etc. She was pregnant and enjoying the respite from two younger children. She’s a delightful person to visit with. Unique Lives was the series that sponsored me in Hartford.

Fun, too. But my year wasn’t all work (even if when I’m “working” I’m usually having a great time). In January I attended the taping of Los Lonely Boys for Austin City Limits; they are terrific. Richard Buckley, our new Conductor for the Civic Light Opera, invited me to his introductory performance of Tosca. He is a very charismatic person. Friends gave me their box at Dell Diamond baseball stadium for a Round Rock Express game, and I filled it with friends, including three boys ages 4, 8 and 11. Each child caught or received a ball, the game was called after the 7th inning due to rain (so the game didn’t take all night), and there were still Friday Fireworks as promised. Great fun. And I attended my first hockey game; the Ice Bats, as people had told me, play a very physical game.

Teaching. I continue to be an Adjunct Professor at The University of Texas – Austin and continue to enjoy working with my students, all of whom are seniors with 3.5 or above grade point averages. I feel privileged to work with them.

The challenges faced now by reproductive rights are truly daunting. Yet those values are so fundamental and important that I cannot give up hope for holding off the forces of repression. Many are coming to the defense of the principles of choice as the dangers are becoming more and more apparent.

I remember so vividly the day when we learned we won Roe v. Wade in the U.S. Supreme Court. It was an exciting day of celebration. I knew then that our victory would shatter barriers of many kinds for women, that it would bring freedom for women and those significant in their lives to make key personal decisions, and that it would be a barricade to keep government and people who want to control the lives of others out of our bedrooms and doctor’s offices. What I did not envision was that today – 32 years later – reproductive freedoms would be under vicious attack, that hurdles to access would be getting higher, that the points of political power would be lining up so solidly against us, or that sex-education and access to contraception would increasingly be challenged.

We may not have anticipated those challenges when Roe was decided, but we face them now together and we will fight together to win. I am honored to work with others to support the timeless principle and guiding star that women – not the government – should make their most personal reproductive decisions.