Sister Helen Prejean, the inspiration for the book and movie “Dead Man Walking,” will visit Lawrence next week to discuss the death penalty and its abolition.

The event is from 6-8 p.m. Feb. 1 at Plymouth Congregational Church, 925 Vermont St. The talk, which will be followed by a reception with refreshments, is free and open to the public.

Prejean, a leading advocate for the abolition of the death penalty, is the author of “Dead Man Walking,” an account of her dealings with death row inmates in Louisiana that sparked a national conversation about capital punishment and inspired an Academy Award-winning movie starring Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon.

Prejean is a member of the Congregation of Sisters of St. Joseph. The Lawrence event is sponsored by the Mennonite Western District Conference along with the Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty, Douglas County Libertarians, Unitarian Fellowship of Lawrence Social Action Committee, Ecumenical Campus Ministries at Kansas University and Peace Mennonite Church.