|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
1976 Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| |
| |
1976 Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients
Remarks Upon Presenting the Presidential Medal of Freedom to David K. E. Bruce
February 10, 1976
Mr. Secretary, Mr. Secretary General, Ambassador Bruce:
This is one of the nicest opportunities I have to recognize one of our foremost, if not our foremost, present-day diplomats in David Bruce. I was looking over the record. Five Presidents have recognized 139 individuals with a Medal of Freedom for outstanding, exemplary, dedicated service on behalf of the United States.
But this happens to be the first Medal of Freedom (I have) given with added distinction. All of you, or many of you, know David Bruce's long, long career, which I did not know, starting in the Virginia Legislature, as I recall--or was it the Maryland Legislature? I was half right.
But I think that shows his versatility when you can be elected to the State legislature both from Virginia and Maryland. And if you look at the record going back a good many years, you see he has been called upon by many, many Presidents to do many vitally important, very crucial jobs. And although he is leaving his present job in NATO, I suggested to him that he leave his telephone number, because as we face problems from time to time, I am certain now that someone with that prestige, that ability, that experience, and that dedication can still be used most effectively on behalf of our country.
So, I would call upon Terry O'Donnell to please read the citation, which will lay out most appropriately the justification for this very, very high honor.
NOTE: The President spoke at 3:40 p.m. at a ceremony in the Cabinet Room at the White House. In his opening remarks, he referred to Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger and Joseph M. A. H. Luns, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
Terrence O'Donnell, Aide to the President, read the citation.
Ambassador Bruce was U.S. Permanent Representative on the NATO Council. His response to the President's remarks is printed in the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (vol. 12, p. 176).
Remarks Upon Presenting the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Arthur Rubinstein
April 1, 1976
Mr. and Mrs. Rubinstein, distinguished members of the Cabinet, guests:
Let me welcome each and every one of you to the White House this afternoon. Many of you, as I look around the room, have been here from time to time over the years; and as long as Betty and I are here I hope that you will regard the White House as a home away from home.
As most of you know, the Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian honor that is within the power of the President of the United States to bestow. I feel very deeply privileged on this occasion to act on behalf of all Americans in presenting that medal to one of the giants of our time.
The legend of Arthur Rubinstein has been built upon many, many pillars. Critics have acclaimed him the greatest master of the piano living today, a musician as thoroughly familiar with Chopin and Beethoven as with the interpretations of more modern Spanish and Impressionist pieces.
It is difficult for many of us to believe that Arthur Rubinstein made his New York debut in Carnegie Hall some 70 years ago. He was a young man and by his own account he was not yet the artist that he knew he could be; but in the years that have passed then, through his extraordinary dedication and through the support of his lovely wife and family, who are here with us today, he has turned his vision and his interpretations into an uncompromising standard of musical excellence. Yet, to millions of fans across the globe, Arthur Rubinstein has given something more than the joy of music--he has also given the joy of life itself.
"I love life unconditionally," he has said, and he has communicated that sheer delight to generation after generation. It was his late and very fine friend, Sol Hurok, who wrote, after first hearing Mr. Rubinstein in 1921: "The power of his personality and the sense of grandeur and poetry that enveloped his playing filled me with almost unbearable excitement."
The multitudes who have packed concert halls in Europe, in the Soviet Union, and Latin America, and in the United States--they, too, have felt that unbearable excitement from this man.
Here in the United States we feel a very special bond with Arthur Rubinstein because in 1946, some 30 years ago, he chose to make America his home. Arthur Rubinstein has been decorated and celebrated in almost every land, but it is said that above all else he values the document that made him an American.
I know that many of you here today have long looked forward to this moment, and I feel proud that on this 200th anniversary of our Nation, I have the great privilege to present this medal to one of our greatest national treasures, Mr. Arthur Rubinstein.
And now, Mr. Rubinstein, if you will please step forward, I will read the citation and will present to you the Medal of Freedom. [At this point, the President read the citation, the text of which follows:
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
AWARDS THIS
PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM
WITH DISTINCTION
TO
ARTHUR RUBINSTEIN
Musician, gentleman, and bon vivant, Arthur Rubinstein has shared his singular and deeply personal mastery of the piano throughout the world. For over seven decades, his ceaseless vitality, his luminous spirit and his profound depth of mind have brought a fresh sparkle to the lives of people everywhere. His audiences love him; his colleagues and friends revere him; and his country, the United States of America, is proud to proclaim him as a giant among artists and men.]
NOTE: The President spoke at 12:25 p.m. in the East Room at the White House.
Following the ceremony, a reception was held in the State Dining Room after which Mr. Rubinstein and his family had a private lunch with the President and Mrs. Ford.
Mr. Rubinstein's response to the President's remarks is printed in the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (vol. 12, p. 527).
Remarks to Members of the U.S. Olympic Team and Presentation of the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Jesse Owens
August 5, 1976
Distinguished athletes and guests, members of the Commission on Olympic Sports:
A few weeks ago I had the privilege of seeing all of you at Plattsburg1 and being your guest on that occasion. And it is a great privilege and pleasure for me and Mrs. Ford to welcome all of you here in the East Garden of the White House.
1 See Items 658 and 659.
At that time in Plattsburg, I congratulated you on making the American Olympic Team. I wished you good luck before you left for Montreal, and I am very happy to welcome you all back and to congratulate you once again--this time for having done a magnificent, a superb job.
I hope the athletes have had an opportunity in the last few days to rest up a bit. Let me say that you were not alone in your feats of stamina and strength. Millions of Americans, including myself, are now recovering from the marathon sessions with their TV sets. [Laughter]
We watched you and your teammates rack up 94 medals, a truly outstanding performance. You won gold, silver, and bronze. Some of you set records. You gave your utmost effort, and on behalf of all Americans, we were very, very proud of you.
Your achievements are more impressive, in my judgment, for the fact you were up against some of the athletes whose training is subsidized in various ways by their governments. In this country it has always been up to those with talent to make their own way in training and in preparing for the highest level of competition. Our belief in the independence of the athlete and the importance of the amateur tradition has held us back from all-out government support.
As one of your teammates said, and said so well, "I wouldn't trade any of my personal freedom for all the records in the world." At the same time I believe the Federal Government can do more to help athletically talented young people achieve their very, very best in the Olympic competition.
Earlier this year I proposed to provide funding for the permanent winter sports facilities at Lake Placid, New York, to be used for the 1980 Winter Olympics and thereafter to train future American champions.2 We can do more than that in the long run. Therefore, I am asking the Congress to extend the life of my Commission on Olympic Sports until January of next year. In that time I am asking the Commission not only to address the problem of sports organization in the United States but also to recommend effective mechanisms for funding training and development of our Olympic competitors.
2 See Item 438.
Other countries have found creative ideas other than government funding. I am confident we will find ways in which American athletes can be provided the means for Olympic training and development, while preserving their bona fide amateur status.
This year's Olympic games, as you all know, had their share of controversy. International politics sometimes threatened to overshadow athletic achievements. In the last week or two, we have even heard some people calling for the Olympic flame to be permanently extinguished. I strongly disagree. I am confident that the Olympic games can be freed from world politics in the future, reviving the spirit of sacred armistice which prevailed at the original games hundreds of years ago.
I am confident that in the long run the larger view will prevail--that a great athletic performance is a personal achievement before it is a national achievement. Whatever their nationality, all athletes are working against the same physical and mental constraints of the human body, of gravity and time. The challenges that all athletes face in common are more important than the boundaries that divide them. That is the true spirit of the Olympic games.
It is in that spirit that I pledge our efforts to ensure that in 1980, at which time we will be hosting the Olympic games in Lake Placid, politics be kept out of the arena. We will welcome every team recognized by the International Olympic Committee. Attempts to use the Olympic games for international power politics will ultimately backfire. Our friend Jesse Owens, here with us today, proved that.
In 1936 when Adolph Hitler was trying to turn the games into a spectacle that would glorify racist dogma of the Nazi state, there was a strong movement in the United States against our participation in the games. As it turned out, U.S. participation in those Olympics provided a sharp rebuke of Hitler's racist rubbish. Five black American athletes won eight gold medals in track and field. One American athlete in particular proved that excellence knows no racial or political limits. That man is Jesse Owens.
I don't have to tell any of you who studied the history of the Olympics of his phenomenal career. I happened to be a student at the University of Michigan when Jesse Owens was a student at Ohio State--as Woody Hayes3 calls it, that school up north. [Laughter] I saw Jesse Owens at a Big 10 track meet in Ann Arbor, as 1 of some 10,000 or 12,000 spectators, when he broke three world records and tied a fourth. His performance that day in the broad jump--26 feet 8ј [5 5/16] inches--was not equaled for 25 years. It was a triumph that all of us will remember.
3 Head coach of the Ohio State University football team.
In the 1936 Olympics Jesse Owens won four gold medals--the 100 meters, the 200 meters, the 400-meter relay, and the broad jump. He personally achieved what no statesman, journalist, or general achieved at that time--he forced Adolph Hitler to leave the stadium rather than acknowledge the superb victories of a black American.
Fifteen years later, revisiting the same stadium, Jesse Owens received a standing ovation when he urged his audience, and I quote, "to stand fast with us for freedom and democracy." Giants like Jesse Owens show us why politics will never defeat the Olympic spirit. His character, his achievements have continued to inspire Americans as they did the whole world in 1936.
He brought his own talents into the service of others. As a speaker, as an author, as a coach, he has inspired many young men and women to achieve their very best for themselves and for America. As an American who rose from poverty to a position of leadership, he has motivated many, many others to make the most of what America has to offer.
Jesse Owens is a modest man. Jesse may wonder why I am singing his praises here today.
Jesse, would you please step forward?
Jesse, it is my privilege to present you today with the Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor that your country can bestow. And I present you with this medal on behalf of the people of the United States. For them in particular, and especially for the athletes like those here today, your character, your achievements will always be a source of inspiration.
The citation reads as follows: "To Jesse Owens, athlete, humanitarian, speaker, author--a master of the spirit as well as the mechanics of sport. He is a winner who knows that winning is not everything. He has shared with others his courage, his dedication to the highest ideals of sportsmanship. His achievements have shown us all the promise of America and his faith in America has inspired countless others to do their best for themselves and for their country."
NOTE: The President spoke at 3:15 p.m. in the East Garden at the White House.
Mr. Owens' response to the President's remarks is printed in the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (vol. 12, p. 1245).
Remarks Upon Presenting the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Martha Graham
October 14, 1976
Martha and distinguished guests:
It's wonderful to have you here tonight. And let me say at the outset, I apologize for being a little late. I had a friendly engagement with some of my friends from the press here. [Laughter]
But it's nice to have you here. And particularly in this Bicentennial Year, I think each of us has celebrated the spirit and the vitality of the United States. And the person we are honoring tonight, Martha Graham, has been doing that for as long as most of us can remember.
When Martha Graham began her career in modern dance--and I have become a better authority on it since I married Betty--[laughter]--she has not only raised people's eyebrows but she has raised sights. A true pioneer, she continually broke new ground and challenged old assumptions.
Her innovations were so original that one startled traditionalist was reported to have said, "How long do you intend, Martha, to keep this up?" I think today America is very thankful that she is still keeping it up, and we congratulate her.
Martha Graham has not only expanded the horizons of modern dance but she also moved inward to convey the deepest types of emotion. In doing so, she created what one critic labeled, and I quote, "an original way of communication." Long before the phrase "body language," Martha, entered our vocabulary, Martha Graham was using the human form to express human feelings.
Martha Graham's name, we all recognize, has become synonymous with modern dance. In addition to her work as a performer and a choreographer, she has provided inspiration and counseling to generations of young people, including Miss Betty Bloomer of Grand Rapids, Michigan. [Laughter]
Her pupils learn that self-discipline is not an obstacle to creativity, but a vehicle; that hard work does not distract from inspiration, but rather allows it to reach its fullest dimension. And most of all, they learn to meet a situation with courage and complete honesty.
Over the years as a great dancer, Martha Graham has received many, many awards. Tonight, she receives an award as a truly great American. Her visits abroad have given the word real meaning--"ambassador." She has shown very clearly to all the world what is possible when personal genius is allowed to flourish under artistic and political freedom.
In America the arts have blossomed, and we are justly proud of the great strides that we have made. Last year in the arena of dance alone, there were more than four times as many professional dance companies as there were in 1965.
But the continued survival and the continued growth of the arts in America requires more than just the genius of the artist. It also requires the foresight, the generosity of both public and private sectors in order to have adequate support.
Tonight, I take pleasure in announcing that I intend to seek full funding for the Cultural Challenge Grant program over the next 3 years. This will provide $12 million in new Federal moneys for the arts next year and approximately $50 million over the next 3 years. Because these grants will be made on the basis of one Federal dollar for every three raised from other sources, it can serve to generate $200 million in new support for the arts.
Many, many people in this audience tonight were instrumental in providing the financial support that enabled Martha Graham's dance troupe to inspire America and truly to inspire the world. Let me assure you that we in the Federal Government are going to do our part, Martha, to encourage the Martha Grahams of the future.
Tonight, however, there is only one Martha Graham and all of America is very, very proud of her. And now, Martha, would you please join me here.
Martha, it gives me a great deal of pleasure to present to you one of our Nation's highest honors, the Medal of Freedom. And let me read, if I might, the citation before I actually put the sash in the appropriate place. The citation reads as follows:
[At this point, the President read the citation, the text of which follows:]
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA
AWARDS THIS
PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM
WITH DISTINCTION
TO
MARTHA GRAHAM
Dancer, teacher, and choreographer, Martha Graham has captivated the world with her magic and has left a legacy of imagination with all who have witnessed her talent. Her energy, creativity and daring have opened new doors of expression in dance. Her followers and friends adore her, and her country, the United States of America, is proud to proclaim her a brilliant star and a National treasure.
Martha and I, as well as Betty, decided that we wouldn't try to pin this medal on her tonight, but we did think you might like to see it, and it will he hers. And we are honored that you're here, and it's a great tribute to you. And all Americans are deeply grateful for your many, many contributions, Martha.
Miss GRAHAM. Mr. President and my dear, very dear Betty, this is an overwhelming moment, and there is very little to say even if you have an Irish tongue that my grandmother said was hung in the middle. [Laughter]
It's a little difficult for me to talk on such an occasion, but America has stood with me. I did not leave; I did not go to any country until I felt I had something to say from here, and there is one woman here tonight who gave me my first chance. She signed a conote. She was a comaker on a bank, the National City Bank. Her name is Frances Steloff.
I had to have two comakers, and then I paid it off. And it was $1,000, and it was a tremendous amount of money. And then, about 2 years later, I had only one comaker. Then I didn't have to have any. And then, finally when I didn't borrow any more, they came and asked me why I didn't borrow. [Laughter]
But when the President said this lady had said, "How long will you keep this up, Martha?"--it is dreadful, dreadful. She had seen me in Denis-Shawn1 during the floating period. And I am deeply grateful to that period, but time does not stand still. She said this to me. I said, "I will keep it up as long as I have an audience."
1 Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn, American dancers and choreographers.
I am dependent on those people to support me, and I can only say that they have, individually and my Government. And I am so happy about your news tonight and your endowment of the arts, because there is a saying in Asia, "They had no poet so they died." In other words, the city, the country had no one to sing or to dance their imagination and their dreams and their faith, so they disappeared from the memory of man.
And I like to feel that those of us who are dancers have contributed toward a singing voice that will go on for a long time, and this is the first wonderful big step, and I thank you.
THE PRESIDENT. May I offer a toast on behalf of Betty and myself to our superstar and a person that truly deserves the Medal of Freedom--Martha Graham.
NOTE: The President spoke at 10:13 p.m. at a ceremony in the State Dining Room at the White House.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Medal History
