WASHINGTON–Former US Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta was among the 10 recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civil honor. President George W. Bush presented the awards at the White House on December 15.The award recognizes extraordinary achievement in public service, science, the arts, education, athletics and other fields. Calling Mineta “a good friend and a great man,” the President added, “Our country honors you.”

            Full text of the President’s introduction on Mineta follows: “Norman Y. Mineta personifies the terms, public servant and patriot. He served as an Army intelligence officer, the mayor of San Jose, California, 10-term U.S. congressman, and a Cabinet member under Presidents of both parties. He was my Secretary of Transportation. No Secretary of Transportation ever served longer, or confronted greater challenges, than Norm Mineta.

“On September the 11th, 2001, he led the effort to bring thousands of commercial and private aircraft swiftly and safely to the ground. Norm was calm and he was decisive in a moment of emergency. He showed those same qualities in the months and years afterward, ably transforming his department to face the dangers of a new era.

“Norman Mineta's whole life has been an extraordinary journey. At the age of 10, he was sent with his mom and dad to an internment camp for Japanese-Americans. Such wrongful treatment could have left a person bitter, but not Norm Mineta. Instead he has given his country a lifetime of service, and he's given his fellow citizens an example of leadership, devotion to duty, and personal character. Mr. Secretary, you're a good friend and a great man, and our country honors you.”

Landmark legislation

In related news, Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi thanked Mineta for his service and congratulated him on receiving this prestigious award, noting he has “served his country with honor and distinction.”

Pelosi pointed out that Mineta’s passion for public life grew from his childhood experiences as a Japanese American during World War II.  Mineta and his family spent several years in Heart Mountain Internment Camp in Wyoming .

“As a Member of Congress, Norm Mineta challenged the immoral actions of our government and pushed the passage of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988,” she stressed.  This landmark legislation acknowledged the injustices that Americans of Japanese ancestry faced during World War II and provided restitution to those affected. His efforts on behalf of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have been monumental.”   

Others who received the award were: literacy pioneer Ruth Colvin; Dr. Norman Francis, for nearly 40 years the President of Xavier University of Louisiana; historian and journalist Paul Johnson; B.B. King, the “King of the Blues;” Nobel Prize winner Dr. Joshua Lederberg for his work in bacterial genetics; winner of two Pulitzer Prizes David McCullough; posthumous awardee Buck O'Neil, player and manager in the Negro Leagues and Major League Baseball’s first African-American coach; journalist William Safire; and Natan Sharansky, imprisoned by the Soviet regime for his work to advance religious liberty and human rights.