Toni Morrison Set to Receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom

The great Toni Morrison is set to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.  The medal is the highest civilian honor given in the United States.   The White House recently announced the list of 13 recipients, including Madeleine Albright, Bob Dylan, John Glenn and John Paul Stevens.  The Obama Administration claims the award is given to “individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.”

Morrison is the winner of both the Pulitzer and Nobel Prizes.  She is the author of the best-selling books, “Beloved” and “Song of Solomon.”  The White House reiterated her Nobel citation, claiming that she is an author “who in novels characterized by visionary force and poetic import, gives life to an essential aspect of American reality.”

The ceremony is set to occur later this year.