A neurological disorder stole her voice. Jennifer Wexton takes it back on the House floor.
A rare neurological disorder robbed Rep. Jennifer Wexton of her ability to speak clearly
When Jennifer Wexton rose Thursday to speak on the House floor, something she has done countless times before, the congresswoman used a voice she thought was gone forever.
After a rare neurological disorder robbed her of her ability to speak clearly, Wexton has been given her voice back with the help of a powerful artificial intelligence program, allowing the Virginia Democrat to make a clone of her speaking voice using old recordings of speeches and appearances she made as a congresswoman. She used that program to deliver what is believed to be the first speech on the House floor ever given via a voice cloned by artificial intelligence.
“It was a special moment that I never imagined could happen. I cried happy tears when I first heard it,” Wexton told The Associated Press in the first interview she's participated in since attaining her new voice.
Standing at a lectern on the floor, Wexton rose to commemorate Disability Pride Month, a time each July that aims to commemorate the Americans with Disabilities Act, the landmark 1990s civil rights law aimed at protecting Americans with disabilities. But her speech was also a symbol of her strength in the face of a debilitating disease.
