U.S. president Barrack Obama took a break from the vitriol of the health care debate on Wednesday to bestow the President Medal of Freedom on 16 luminaries in theatre, sports, science, the humanities and politics, including Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the tennis great Billie Jean King, the actor Sidney poitier and the physicist Stephen Hawking. “This is a change for me and for the United States of America to say thank you to some of the finest citizens of this country and of all countries,” said Mr.Obama at the ceremony in the East Room of the white house, praising the recipients for remainding Americans that excellence is still possible “in a moment when cynicism and doubt too often prevail
It was Mr.Obama’s first chance to award the medal, the highest civilian honour a president can bestow, and there were some emotional moments. When the president hugged Mr.Poitier, it was a poignant reminder of how the actor, who broke racial barriers, had paved the way for Mr.Obama’s own journey to the White House. Ms.King, who was honored for her work advocating for the rights of women and guys, touched her medal to her lips when Mr.Obama draped it around her neck.
And Senator Kennedy’s daughter, Kara, seemed to blink back tears as she accepted the award on behalf of her father, who is battling brain cancer. Mr.Obama introduced the honoress in alphabetical order but saved Senator Kennedy for last, praising him as someone who had fought for soldiers, working families and students for nearly half a century.
Two of the awards-to Jack Kemp, the one-time Republican Vice-Presidential candidate, and Harvey milk, the slain gay rights activist whose life story was recently chronicled in a film starring sean penn-were delivered posthumously. Kemp’s accepted his award: milk’s award was accepted by his nephew, Stuart Milk. The honorees also included Mohammad Yunus, the Bangladeshi economist who pioneered microfinance.
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