I won’t address the slight controversy of Mary Robinson, the somewhat blatant political pandering in regard to Jack Kemp, Ted Kennedy,and Sandra Day O’Connor. At least I won’t comment on them here (see my political blog – VASS).
What I do find interesting is the awards going to Sidney Poitier, Desmond Tutu, Chita Rivera, Joe Medicine Crow - High Bird , and Rev. Joseph Lowery. I find their selections to be both interesting and about time.
Rev. Lowery was a critical component for the Civil Rights Movement. Like many at the time, he stood up when he was being shouted at to sit down. He worked hard to change the blatant and rampant racist attitudes in America just some 40 years ago. He may not be a famous as Dr. Martin Luther King or Malcolm X, but he represents the fact that far more people were involved and just as important in changing America for the better. Too bad schoolbooks, and the annual Black History Month tributes to Dr. King, don’t take the time to mention him or most anyone else.
Desmond Tutu is known for his efforts to free the majority of people in South Africa from Apartheid. He was a champion of Civil Rights in a nation far from our own, with even more extreme racist attitudes. It was that perseverance in the face of overwhelming odds that helped bring American support to his efforts, along with the rest of the world. It is that kind of attention that America refuses to give other parts of the world, including Darfur, which is a shame for us and not Archbishop Tutu who continues in efforts to bring peace and freedom to people all over the world.
Joe Medicine Crow - High Bird is the last living War Chief of the Crow Nation. He is also a recipient of the Bronze Star, and the Chevalier Légion d'honneur and is a noted author and historian. He has a Masters degree (a first among the Crow Tribe), and was the first among his tribe to go to college (as stated by President Obama). He is a symbol of how any American can succeed in the face of any adversity – even that of the Government and its caretaking of Native American Indians on reservations.
Chita Rivera, born Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero, is a favorite of mine. A Puerto Rican woman, she is an outstanding entertainer. She is the first Hispanic woman to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award in 2002. She got her start through chance, and made her career due to talent, perseverance, and a willingness to take on the Hollywood mentality head on. She has been in 17 plays, and over 10 movies and television shows in a career that has spanned some 50 years.
Sidney Poitier is perhaps the best known of all the recipients of the Medal of Freedom today. He is the first African American male to win an Academy Award for Best Actor – something not repeated for 4 decades. He was a symbol of change during a time when America was color-blind. He broke through barriers that every entertainer of color today no longer even know existed. He was the leading box office star in 1967, which is significant as it was also a time where in many place segregation was commonplace and African Americans were considered incapable of success.
He is a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire – not honorary but actual. He is the Bahamian Ambassador to Japan, since ’97. He directed the one-time highest grossing film by a Black director, Stir Crazy.
All in all he has been the symbol of success and dignity and intellect for over 40 years. He has been criticized, but there is no doubt that he contributed directly and massively in changing attitudes in America and across the globe.
Do each of these people rise to the order of
“especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavors”?
I believe so. Each helped change America, and in many cases the world. Each has helped make the worlds a better place. And every one of the abovementioned people did so for decades.
I don’t question why they have received the Medal of Freedom, I question why it took so long for it to be given to them.
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