Nun who wrote ‘Dead Man Walking’ to talk at WFU Feb. 12

Sister Helen PrejeanSister Helen Prejean, author of “Dead Man Walking: An Eye Witness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States,” will speak at Wake Forest University Feb. 12 at 8 p.m. The lecture, “Dead Man Walking—The Journey,” will take place in Benson University Center’s Pugh Auditorium. It is sponsored by the Wake Forest Student Union and is free and open to the public.

Sister Prejean, a Roman Catholic nun, has accompanied five men to their death by execution. Her book, “Dead Man Walking,” is a first-hand testimony to her experience working with death row inmates. Susan Sarandon won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Sister Prejean in the movie version of the book. It was on The New York Times Best-seller list for 31 weeks and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. The San Francisco Opera Company has also translated it into an opera.

Sister Prejean joined the Sisters of St. Joseph of Medaille in 1957. She is a graduate of St. Mary’s Dominican College and received her master’s degree from St. Paul’s University in 1973. She has taught junior and senior high school and was religious education director at St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Parish in New Orleans. She began counseling death row inmates in 1981.

For more information, call 336-758-4869.

Editors’ Note: To arrange an interview with Sister Prejean, contact the News Service.

Categories: Arts & Culture, Events, School of Divinity, University Announcement