Albright Awarded Medal of Freedom

First female Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was honored Tuesday by Obama with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor, for her efforts to bring peace to the Middle East and Africa, reduce the spread of nuclear weapons, and for her role as a longtime champion of democracy and human rights. Albright was one of 13 honored, including cultural icon and musician Bob Dylan, public servant John Doar, author Toni Morrison and former U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens. Jan Karski, the former Polish officer and Nazi prisoner who escaped to provide first-hand accounts of the Holocaust to Western allies, was honored posthumously.