President Biden bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 19 of the most famous names in politics, sports, entertainment, civil rights, LGBTQ+ advocacy, and science on Saturday at the White House. Accompanied by her husband, former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton received a standing ovation in the East Room as she received her medal, the AP reports. One of the posthumous recipients was Robert F. Kennedy, who was a senator and attorney general. "Bobby Kennedy is one of my true political heroes," Biden said, per the Hill. "I love and I miss him dearly."
Biden, who leaves office this month, noted that it was his final chance to present the nation's highest civilian honor, calling the recipients "truly extraordinary people, who gave their sacred effort, their sacred effort, to shape the culture and the cause of America," per the AP. The recipients and their fields are:
- Sports and entertainment: Magic Johnson, NBA great and businessman; Michael J. Fox, an actor who advocates for Parkinson's disease research and development; Lionel Messi, a soccer star who was not present; William Sanford Nye, better known as "Bill Nye the Science Guy, and Denzel Washington, an actor and director.
- Philanthropy: Chef José Andrés, whose World Central Kitchen charity has become one of the world's most recognized food relief organizations; George Soros, a Democratic donor; and Bono, a social justice activist and lead singer of the Irish band U2.
- Politics: The late Fannie Lou Hamer, who founded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and laid the groundwork for the 1965 Voting Rights Act; the late George Romney, who was governor of Michigan and secretary of housing and urban development; the late Ash Carter, who was secretary of defense; Clinton, and Kennedy.
- Also: Conservationist Jane Goodall; longtime Vogue magazine editor-in-chief Anna Wintour; fashion designer Ralph Lauren; American Film Institute and Kennedy Center Honors founder George Stevens Jr.; entrepreneur and LGBTQ+ activist Tim Gill, and David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group global investment firm and donor for work on the Washington Monument and the National Zoo, per the New York Times.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom was awarded 654 times between 1963 and 2024, according to the Congressional Research Service.
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