Each year, Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services in cooperation with the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History give the Ford Freedom Award posthumously to honorees who have dedicated their life to improving the African American community and the world at large through their chosen fields (arts, humanities, religion, business, politics, science or entertainment).
This year’s honoree will be the New York Renaissance basketball team, first all-black, African American owned professional basketball team. It was founded in 1923. The award is being given to the team posthumously. Previous posthumous honorees have included Judge Constance Baker Motley, Ossie Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Langston Hughes, Jackie Robinson, General Daniel “Chappie” James, Benjamin Elijah Mays, Coretta Scott King and John H. Johnson.
In addition, NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will be honored as the Ford Freedom Award Scholar. The Ford Freedom Award Scholar distinction is given to individuals who have excelled on a national or international level in the same field as the Ford Freedom Award honoree and who have furthered the achievements for a new generation. Past Scholars include Judge Damon J. Keith, Morgan Freeman, Reggie Jackson and Raymond Usher IV.
Ford Freedom Award proceeds support educational programs, exhibits, and community outreach initiatives of the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the world’s largest institution dedicated to the African American experience. For more information, visit the museum’s official website.
SAVE THE DATE
May 17, 2012 6:00 pm – 10:30 pm (Thursday)
Charles H. Wright Museum Of African American History
315 East Warren, Detroit, MI
