Twenty-four years after her mother famously addressed the Democratic National Convention in Atlanta, Cecile Richards will get a prominent speaking slot at this year’s convention in Charlotte.

Richards was among nine women added to the roster of convention speakers today in the midst of a public firestorm over women’s reproductive rights that was sparked by Missouri congressman Todd Akin.

Richards, the president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, is expected to highlight the differences between President Obama and the Republican Party on women’s issues. Mitt Romney, the Republican candidate for president, vowed earlier in the campaign to shut down Planned Parenthood, but he later said he meant he would shut down its federal funding sources.

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