Sarah Weddington collection a 'treasure trove' honoring career defending women's rights
DENTON (CBSDFW.COM) – A new collection opening to the public inside the main library at Texas Women's University in Denton is all about preserving and honoring the legacy of famed lawyer, women's advocate, state legislator, and educator Sarah Weddington.
Most well-known for successfully arguing the landmark Roe v. Wade case before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973, Weddington died last year.
More than 300 boxes, including more than 1 million documents and a variety of photos are included in the collection.
It was described as a "treasure trove" of Weddington's work not just with the Roe v. Wade case but also from the rest of her lifelong career defending women's rights.
Kimberly Johnson is the Director Of Special Collections and University Archives at TWU and said, "It is about Sarah's legacy, and everything that she did. Researchers, historians, scholars, students, documentarians, everybody has access to come and see what Sarah did."
Johnson explained that Weddington made the arrangements for all the documents to be housed and exhibited at TWU shortly before she passed away.
University officials confirm Weddington's connection to TWU dates back more than 10 years when she served as a visiting professor.
Dr. Danielle Phillips-Cunningham is the Director of Multi-Cultural Women's and Genders Studies at TWU.
She said the Weddington Collection is serving as a visible and tangible backdrop to conversations she is having with students about the possibility that Roe v. Wade will be overturned.
Dr. Phillips-Cunningham said, "Although this is a draft opinion, and it hasn't taken into effect I predict that it will," in response to the leaked opinion documents indicating the high court currently favors overturning the landmark decision from nearly 50 years ago.
"It throws everything out of whack and it really puts our democracy at stake. Many people talk about the importance of personal choice and personal freedom and that's thrown out of the window."
If you are interested in seeing the Sarah Weddington collection for yourself, you can do so by making an appointment with TWU's library directly.
