WASHINGTON: Joe Biden on Saturday (Jan 4) will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 19 honorees, bestowing the best civilian honour in the US to entertainers, sports activities stars, politicians and diplomats.
Amongst these to obtain honours from the outgoing US president are singer and activist Bono, basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson, longtime trend editor Anna Wintour, soccer celebrity Lionel Messi, actors Denzel Washington and Michael J Fox, and clothier Ralph Lauren.
The honorees “are nice leaders as a result of they’re good individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to their nation and the world”, the White Home mentioned in a press release.
Others honoured on this 12 months’s crop are chef Jose Andres, founding father of the World Central Kitchen NGO, and primate researcher Jane Goodall, a number one environmentalist voice.
A number of the recipients chosen by the 82-year-old Democrat have a extra political profile, comparable to billionaire financier and left-wing philanthropist George Soros – a boogeyman of types for Republicans – and Hillary Clinton, the previous first woman, senator and US secretary of state who unsuccessfully ran towards Donald Trump for the presidency in 2016.
Soros was honoured as a result of he “has supported organisations, and initiatives the world over that strengthen democracy, human rights, training and social justice”, in line with a White Home assertion.
Clinton, in the meantime, “made historical past many instances over a long time in public service”, together with being the primary lady nominated by a serious celebration for a US presidential election.