President Clinton, Scholar John Hope Franklin, & Veteran L. Tammy Duckworth to be Honored by Nation’s Largest Civil Rights Coalition

Washington – Citing their dedication to social justice, patriotism, and scholarship, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR) today announced that it will honor President Bill Clinton, historian John Hope Franklin, and Illinois Director of Veterans Affairs L. Tammy Duckworth at its May 10th annual Hubert H. Humphrey Civil Rights Award Dinner.

Commenting on the trio, LCCR President Wade Henderson said:

“President Clinton put civil rights back on the national agenda, initiating the One America dialogue, and then took that same vision abroad once he left office.  Dr. Franklin’s scholarship has enriched our history by documenting the African-American struggle that helped the nation honor its democratic ideals.  And Tammy Duckworth, both in uniform and public life, has championed our basic democratic bargain through a platform focused on the health and welfare of returning veterans.”

LCCR’s 31st annual award dinner will bring together a who’s who of the civil rights community with supporters of  social justice – members of  Congress, executive branch officials, business leaders, educators and civil rights leaders, along with the next generation of civil and human rights advocates.

Past recipients of the Hubert H. Humphrey Civil Rights honor include labor leader Dolores Huerta, civil rights icon Julian Bond, actor-activists Danny Glover and Edward James Olmos, journalists Tom Joyner and Ellen Goodman, as well as elected leaders Ted Kennedy, Barbara Jordan, and John Lewis.

Proceeds from last year’s dinner helped fund LCCR’s bipartisan effort to reauthorize and restore the landmark Voting Rights Act and LCCR’s Muslim-to-Muslim dialogue in the Netherlands, a conversation co-convened with the U.S. State Department that has become a template for public diplomacy efforts and outreach to Muslim communities both here and abroad.

About this year’s honorees, Henderson said: “These three represent the best of America, exhibiting passion, courage and conviction. They are guides along our national road toward an equal and just society.”

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WILLIAM J. CLINTON

Building on the work he started as governor of Arkansas and President of the United States, President Bill Clinton continues to play a crucial role in protecting and raising the profile of civil rights and human rights at home and abroad through the work of his Foundation and its initiatives. The Clinton Foundation works to solve some of our most pressing challenges of global interdependence, including HIV/AIDS around the world, childhood obesity in the United States, climate change, and poverty.  As with all of his efforts, he brings attention and resources to pressing challenges, but also raises the conscience of the nation and the world.

DR. JOHN HOPE FRANKLIN

As an author, educator and historian, Dr. John Hope Franklin has woven blacks into the tapestry of American history through such pioneering works as From Slavery to Freedom, up to his most recent publication, Mirror to America: The Autobiography of John Hope Franklin. Appointed to One America: the President’s Initiative on Race by President Clinton, Dr. Franklin opened a national dialogue on race and equality. The establishment of the John Hope Franklin Center for Interdisciplinary and International Studies at Duke University in 2000 continues Dr. Franklin’s work and legacy.

L. Tammy Duckworth

Director Duckworth’s extraordinary service and sacrifice in Iraq cost her both her legs, but gave her a platform on which to stand. After a run for U.S. Congress, she was appointed by Governor Rod R. Blagojevich as Director of the Illinois Veterans’ Affairs Department. She helped establish the Intrepid Foundation, making the health and welfare of returning veterans an absolute priority. Her positions on access to health care and quality education and call for common sense immigration reform mirror the civil and human rights community’s commitment to social justice for all.