nytimes June 3, 2021 10:00pm High School Valedictorian Takes Aim at Texas Abortion Law #abortion #lawandlegislation #womenandgirls #commencementspeeches #lakehighlandshighschool #smithpaxton2003 #dallastex #texas #news As Texas Abortion Law Nears, Opponents Amplify a Valedictorian’s Speech In a surprise rewrite of her planned graduation speech, Paxton Smith, 18, of Dallas, denounced the new law, and the video was widely shared online. Not everyone was a fan.