President Barack Obama on Friday
awarded gay rights activist Jeanne Manford the Presidential Citizens
Medal.
Manford, who died last month at the age
of 92, founded with her husband Parents, Families and Friends of
Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) in 1972 as a response to the brutal beating
of her gay son, Morty, while attending a gay rights demonstration in
New York City.
Obama called the event to honor 13
Americans “one of his favorites.”
“[B]ecause it's a moment when, as a
people, we get to recognize some extraordinary men and women who have
gone above and beyond for their country and for their fellow citizens
– often without fanfare; often with not a lot of attention; very
rarely for any profit.”
“And today, we honor you. We
celebrate you. And, most of all, we have a chance to say thank you.
Because all of us are what the rest of us aspire to be.”
On Manford, Obama said: “When Jeanne
Manford learned that her son Morty had been badly beaten up at a gay
rights demonstration, nobody would have faulted her for bringing him
home, holding him close, just focusing on her child. This was back
in 1972. There was a lot of hate, a lot of vitriol towards gays and
lesbians and anyone who supported them. But instead, she wrote to
the local newspaper and took to the streets with a simple message:
No matter who her son was -- no matter who he loved –- she loved
him, and wouldn’t put up with this kind of nonsense. And in that
simple act, she inspired a movement and gave rise to a national
organization that has given so much support to parents and families
and friends, and helped to change this country. We lost Jeanne last
month, but her legacy carries on, every day, in the countless lives
that she touched.”
Accepting the medal on behalf of
Manford was Suzanne Swan, Manford's daughter. (Video from the
ceremony is embedded on this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)