Sister Helen Prejean

Sister Helen Prejean is a tireless activist working toward the worldwide abolition of capital punishment, and, most famously, author of Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the U.S. Since its publication in 1993, Dead Man Walking has been transformed into an acclaimed film starring Susan Sarandon, as well as an opera at the San Francisco Opera Company. Sister Prejean’s best-selling story continues to capture the imaginations not only of filmmakers and composers, but of activists who recognize the need to overturn a corrupt, class-biased death penalty and to reform the judicial system. An advocate for prisoners’ lives and rights, Sister Helen has also founded a support group for murder victims’ families and is an honorary member of Murder Victims for Reconciliation. She has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize four times and is the honorary chairperson of Moratorium 2000 (www.moratorium2000.org), a group gathering signatures for a global moratorium of the death penalty.