U.S. President Joe Biden bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honour in the U.S., to Canadian actor Michael J. Fox and others on Saturday.
“Michael J. Fox is an actor who has won five Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Grammy Award. He is a world-renowned advocate for Parkinson’s disease research and development,” the White House said in a statement announcing the recipients.
Fox, who was born in Alberta and starred in the Back to the Future movie franchise, publicly disclosed that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1991 at age 29 and founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2000 for Parkinson’s research.
“Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom is humbling, an honour I could never have anticipated,” Fox, 63, said on his foundation’s website. “I’m grateful for this recognition, which I share with the patients, families and researchers who have brought us closer than ever to ending Parkinson’s disease once and for all.”
Among those also honoured by Biden included José Andrés, celebrity chef and founder of World Central Kitchen; Bono, activist and singer of Irish band U2; former U.S. secretary of state and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton; conservationist Jane Goodall; Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington; and Anna Wintour, fashion icon and Vogue editor.
