Profile in Courage Award
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Profile in Courage Award is a private award given to recognize displays of courage similar to those John F. Kennedy described in his book Profiles in Courage. It is given to individuals (often elected officials) who, by acting in accord with their conscience, risked their careers or lives by pursuing a larger vision of the national, state or local interest in opposition to popular opinion or pressure from constituents or other local interests.
The winners of the award are selected by a bi-partisan committee named by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, which includes members of the Kennedy family as well as other prominent Americans. It is generally awarded each year around the time of Kennedy's birthday (May 29) at a ceremony at the Kennedy Library in Boston. The award is generally presented by Kennedy's daughter Caroline Kennedy.
The winner is presented with a sterling silver lantern made by Tiffany's which was designed by Edwin Schlossberg. The lantern is patterned after the lanterns on USS Constitution, the last sail-powered ship to remain part of the US Navy, which is permanently moored nearby.
[edit] 9/11 first responders award
In May 2002, an unprecedented Profile in Courage Award was awarded to representatives of the NYPD, the New York City Fire Department, and the military as representatives of all of the people who acted to save the lives of others during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. [1]
[edit] Recipients
- 1990: Carl Elliott, Sr.
- 1991: Charles Weltner
- 1992: Lowell Weicker, Jr.
- 1993: James Florio
- 1994: Henry Gonzalez
- 1995: Michael Synar
- 1996: Corkin Cherubini
- 1997: Charles Price
- 1998: Nickolas C. Murnion; also, the signatories of the Good Friday Peace Agreement
- 1999: Russell Feingold and John McCain
- 2000: Hilda Solis
- 2001: John Lewis; Gerald Ford
- 2002: Kofi Annan; Dean Koldenhoven; the representatives of the NYPD, the FDNY, and the military who risked their lives on September 11, 2001
- 2003: Dan Ponder, Jr.; David Beasley; Roy Barnes
- 2004: Sima Samar; Cindy Watson; Paul Muegge
- 2005: Joseph Darby; Shirley Franklin; Bill Ratliff; Victor Yushchenko
- 2006: Alberto J. Mora; John Murtha
- 2007: Bill White; Doris Voitier
- 2008: Jennifer Brunner and Debra Bowen; William Winter (Lifetime Achievement Award)
