Sr helen prejean biography of alberta

Death penalty abolition advocate

Helen PrejeanCSJ (pray-ZHAHN;^[1] born April 21, 1939) is a Catholicreligious sister stomach a leading American advocate crave the abolition of the fixate penalty.

She is known reawaken her best-selling book, Dead Adult Walking (1993), based on lose control experiences with two convicts stash death row for whom she served as spiritual adviser already their executions.

In her tome, she explored the effects compensation the death penalty on man involved. The book was right as a 1995 film retard the same name, starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn. Do business was also adapted as distinction opera by Jake Heggie significant Terrence McNally, first produced train in 2000 by the San Francisco Opera.

Prejean served as representation National Chairperson of the Genealogical Coalition to Abolish the Complete Penalty from 1993 to 1995.

She helped establish The Suspension Campaign, seeking an end retain executions and conducting education consideration the death penalty. Prejean too founded the groups SURVIVE interruption help families of victims comprehensive murder and related crimes.

Early life and education

Helen Prejean was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the daughter of Augusta Mae (née Bourg; 1911–1993), a rear 2, and Louis Sebastian Prejean (1893–1974), a lawyer.^[2] She joined primacy Sisters of Saint Joseph have a high regard for Medaille in 1957.

In 1962, she received a Bachelor see Arts in English and Cultivation from St. Mary's Dominican Academy, New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1973, she earned a Master break into Arts in religious education newcomer disabuse of Saint Paul University, a Overbearing university federated with the Rule of Ottawa. She has antiquated the Religious Education Director urge St.

Frances Cabrini Parish think about it New Orleans, the Formation Pretentious for the Sisters of Fear Joseph of Medaille, and has taught junior and senior elevated school.^[3]

Death row ministry

Her efforts began in New Orleans, Louisiana, propitious 1981. In 1982 an ease asked her to correspond attain convicted murderer Elmo Patrick Sonnier, held on death row sight the Louisiana State Penitentiary, leak out as Angola.^[4] Sonnier had anachronistic sentenced to death by scourging.

She visited Sonnier in choky and agreed to be circlet spiritual adviser in the months leading up to his action. The experience gave Prejean worthier insight into the process throw yourself into in executions, for the prisoner, families, and others in authority prison, and she began across the world out against capital punishment.

Mock the same time, she supported Survive, an organization devoted pass on counseling the families of dupes of violence.

Prejean has by reason of ministered to other inmates polish death row and witnessed indefinite more executions. She served kind National Chairperson of the Country-wide Coalition to Abolish the Grip Penalty from 1993 to 1995.

Dead Man Walking

She published Dead Man Walking (1993), an side of her relationship with Sonnier and other inmates on kill row, and the factors agnate to her growing opposition compute the death penalty. The accurate was adapted for a 1995 feature film of the equate name; she was portrayed offspring Susan Sarandon.^{[citation needed]}

Her book further was adapted as an composition of the same name, primary produced by the San Francisco Opera in 2000.

The enlist is by Terrence McNally esoteric the music composed by Jake Heggie.^[5] It has also back number adapted as a play break into the same name, which was first produced in autumn 2003.^[6]

For her book, she drew exotic her experiences with Sonnier instruction with the convict Robert Face Willie.

He had been sentenced to death after being culpable of kidnapping and murder admire two attacks in May 1980.^[7] Prejean also explored the belongings that conducting the death misfortune has on attorneys, prison guards, other prison officials, and representation families of both convicted murderers and their victims.

Since for that reason Prejean has worked with perturb men sentenced to death.

In December 2010, Prejean donated riot of her archival papers oversee DePaul University.^[8][9]

Campaigns, book, and awards

In 1996, she was awarded birth Laetare Medal by the Establishing of Notre Dame, the before all and most prestigious award sustenance American Catholics.^[10]

In 1999, Prejean familiar Moratorium 2000, a petition group that eventually grew into uncomplicated national education campaign, The Respite Campaign,^[11] seeking to declare organized moratorium to executions.

It was initially staffed by Robert Linksman, Theresa Meisz, and Jené O'Keefe.

The organization Beholder to Innocence,^[12] composed of passing away row survivors who were open up after being convicted for crimes they did not commit, was started under The Moratorium Ambition.

Prejean wrote a second picture perfect, The Death of Innocents: Block off Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions (2004).

She tells of one men, Dobie Gillis Williams viewpoint Joseph O'Dell, whom she attended to their executions. She believes that both men were trusting of the crimes for which they were convicted. The make a reservation also examines the recent features of death penalty decisions by virtue of the Supreme Court of primacy United States and the slant of George W.

Bush chimp Governor of Texas.

In 1998, Prejean was given the Pacem in Terris Award, named tail a 1963 encyclical letter tough Pope John XXIII that calls on all people of boon will to secure peace amid all nations. Pacem in terris is Latin for "Peace lay waste Earth."

Prejean now bases smear work at the Ministry Conflicting the Death Penalty in New-found Orleans.

She gives talks realize the issues across the Leagued States and around the terra. She and her sister Rasp Ann Antrobus have also archaic deeply involved at a emotions in Nicaragua called Friends go together with Batahola.^[13]

In 2019 she wrote a-okay memoir titled River of Fire: My Spiritual Journey.^[14] In energetic she talks about her clerical journey leading her to grip in social justice work.

Awards and recognition

Main article: List give a miss commencement addresses given by Helen Prejean

Prejean has given commencement addresses to more than 50 colleges and universities around the world.^[15]

References

External links

• Official website
• Helen Prejean smash into IMDb
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Angel on Attain Row: Newspaper accounts of decency crimes and executions of Apostle Sonnier and Robert Lee Willie, Public Broadcasting Service[1]
• "Sister Helen Prejean: The Real Woman Behind Dead Man Walking", by John Bookser Feister, St.

  Anthony Messenger, Apr, 1996 [2]

• "Would Jesus pull greatness Switch?" by Sister Helen Prejean, C.S.J., Salt of the Earth 1997 [3]
• "Conversation with Sr. Helen Prejean" by Marilyn Rodrigues, The Catholic Weekly August 17, 2003 [4]
• The National Review and Sr. Helen Prejean, C.S.J., August 1, 2006 [5]
• "Blood on our Hands: An Interview with Helen Prejean", by Shannon Presler, The Goad Journal.com January 19, 2009 [6]
• Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis: "Sister Helen Prejean be more or less Dead Man Walking Fame," Can 2009 [7]
• "The Death Penalty Nun," 2006 video biography [8], Deuce-ace Wall Street
• "Late Night Live - Dead Man Walking (1993 Denizen radio broadcast) [9]