The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center recognized four awardees for their work in social justice and modern-day freedom efforts at the International Freedom Conductor Awards Gala Saturday night.
The 2021 awardees include George and Amal Clooney, the late Rep. John Lewis and Bryan Stevenson, lawyer and author of the New York Times Bestseller "Just Mercy."
The IFCA, according to the Freedom Center, recognizes individuals who "reflect the spirit and courageous actions of conductors of the historic Underground Railroad" and is the highest honor presented by the Freedom Center. The first IFCA was given to Rosa Parks in 1998.
News:John Lewis, George and Amal Clooney among recipients of Freedom Center's highest honor award
"The award honors individuals who have tirelessly worked to pursue a fair and justice society, and create a world where we all can thrive," said co-chair of the gala Carole Rigaud, who spoke at Saturday's event. "This year's awardees come from all walks of life, but what they have in common is a shared belief in a great truth, which is 'freedom for all.'"
Bryan Stevenson
Lawyer and social justice activist Bryan Stevenson was recognized for his efforts to challenge the American criminal justice system. As founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, Stevenson has guaranteed defense of anyone sentenced to the death penalty in the state of Alabama. He also founded the Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in 2018, both located in Montgomery, Alabama. Stevenson's award was presented Saturday by David Singleton, executive director of the Ohio Justice and Policy Center, who called Stevenson a "champion for people in Alabama." Stevenson was unable to be present Saturday to receive his award in person.
"He is an inspiration to those of us who work in the space of trying to reform our criminal legal system," Singleton said Saturday.
As an attorney, Stevenson has presented multiple cases in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, including the famous Miller v. Alabama decision, which now forbids life in prison without parole sentences for juvenile homicide offenders.
Rep. John Lewis
Rep. John Lewis is remembered as both a U.S. Congressman and a Civil Rights Icon. As an integral part of the Civil Rights Movement, he walked beside Dr. Matin Luther King Jr. as they marched on Washington, and was one of the leaders of the famous march from Selma to Montgomery in 1965. As a congressman representing Georgia's 5th district, Lewis continually fought for racial equality, voting rights, LGBTQIA rights and expanding access to healthcare. Lewis was remembered on Saturday for his empathy and Saint-like touch to his human rights efforts, and was fondly quoted with saying, "I always loved to make things grow."
In honor of Lewis, Treasurer of the Board of Directors for the John and Lillian Miles Lewis Foundation, Mignon Morman Willis, accepted the IFCA Saturday. Willis was a colleague and close friend of the Lewis family, and said that Lewis had followed the Freedom Center since it was founded.
"The preservation and truthful telling of history was very important to Congressman Lewis," Willis said on Saturday. "The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is a testament to the dignity of the dispossess of every corner of the global who yarn for freedom."
George and Amal Clooney
American actor and philanthropist George Clooney was recognized Saturday for his history of global humanitarian efforts. Most notably, Clooney has worked tirelessly to bring attention to the human rights violations in Sudan and South Sudan. In 2010, he founded the Satellite Sentinel Project, which alerted citizens of Sudan and South Sudan of potential threats through private satellite pictures. Clooney was also arrested in 2012 along side his father, American journalist Nick Clooney, as part of a peaceful protest outside the Sudanese Embassy in Washington, D.C. Both George and Amal were presented with their awards on Saturday by Nick Clooney.
"In our family, there is only one golden rule, and that is to challenge the people who have the power and defend the people who don't," George Clooney said.
Amal Clooney, a human rights attorney, has represented victims of human rights violations in both national and international courts. Clooney currently represents Yazidi victims of genocide as well as over one hundred Sudanese victims in an International Criminal Court trial against Janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb. She also represents Filipino journalist and 2021 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Maria Ressa, who faces life in prison in the Philippines for her work.
Clooney spoke on Saturday about "standing on the shoulders" of those who fought for the freedoms that she enjoys now, including her family who escaped a civil war in Lebanon and moved to England as refugees.
"When I became a mother, it made me think about what I could give to the next generation," Clooney said. "What would be because of me?"
George Clooney spoke words of encouragement to others fighting for social justice and freedom, recognizing all the times his efforts to bring attention to the injustices in Sudan seem to fail.
"You have to make peace with failure," Clooney said after receiving his award Saturday. "A lot of people think of failure as the end. But it's not. Failure is the essential element in that long arch of justice. You fail, and fail, and fail, until you don't. And then one day, you wake up, and those murders in Darfur are arrested, and your wife is apart of the team that is going to bring them to justice. And then you win."
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