3/7/06

Former Senator to Speak at Women's Symposium

Former U.S. Senator Carol Moseley-Braun will deliver the keynote speech for the 2006 Women's Symposium at Northwestern University School of Law on March 7.

This event is part of a week-long symposium organized by the Women's Leadership Coalition, a Northwestern Law student organization, to bring together attorneys and scholars from around the nation to speak on issues of interest to women in the law. This year's theme is "Breaking the Stigma."

Moseley-Braun will speak at noon in Lincoln Hall, 357 E. Chicago Ave. The event is free and open to the public.

Moseley-Braun made history in 1992 when she became the first black woman to be elected to the U.S. Senate. She is one of two African Americans to serve in the Senate in the 20th Century, and was the sole African American in the Senate from 1992 to 1998. In 1999, President Clinton nominated her to serve as Ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa. Moseley-Braun was also a former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004.

She joined the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago in 1973 where she focused on civil and appellate law. Her work in housing, health policy, and environmental law won her the Attorney General's Special Achievement award. She was elected a representative in the Illinois General Assembly in 1978 and has subsequently received more 300 awards and 8 honorary degrees for her achievements in the public interest.

Moseley-Braun now divides her time between her business law practice and Good Food Organics, an organic food company she founded in partnership with the Goodness Greenness food services company.

For more information about the symposium, contact Leila Farrahi.