【正文】 ence, technology, engineering, and math. At the end of her life, she became aninspiration for those battlingpancreatic cancer, and for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, andtransgendermunity. The tale of a quiet hero,Sally Rideamp。rsquo。s story demonstrates that the sky isno limit for those who dream ofreaching for the stars. (Applause.)
　　Walter Naegle accepting on behalfof his partner, Bayard Rustin. (Applause.) Bayard Rustinwas agiant in the American Civil Rights Movement. Openly gay at a time when many had tohide who they loved, hisunwavering belief that we are all equal members of a “。single humanfamily”。 tookhim from his first Freedom Ride to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenderrightsmovement. Thanks to hisunparalleled skills as an organizer, progress that once seemedimpossibleappears, in retrospect, to have been inevitable. Fifty years after the March onWashington heorganized, America honors Bayard Rustin as one of its greatest architectsforsocial change and a fearless advocate for its most vulnerable citizens. (Applause.)
　　Arturo Sandoval. (Applause.) Arturo Sandoval is one of the worldamp。rsquo。s finest jazz into poverty in Cuba and held back byhis government, he risked everything to share hisgifts with the world eventually defecting with help from Dizzy Gillespie, his mentorandfriend. In the decades since, thisastonishing trumpeter, pianist, and poser hasinspired audiences in everycorner of the world and awakened a new generation of greatperformers. He remains one of the best ever to play. (Applause.)
　　Linnea Smith, accepting on behalfof her husband, Dean E. Smith. (Applause.) Dean spent36 seasons taking college basketball to new heights. As head coach at theUniversity of NorthCarolina at Chapel Hill, he led his team to 11 Final Fours, two nationaltitles,and 879 victories, retiring as the winningest menamp。rsquo。s college basketballcoach in history. DeanSmith brought thesame mitment to supporting his players off the court. He helped morethan 96 percent of hislettermen graduate. And in an era ofdeep division, he taught players toovere bigotry with courage andpassion. He will forever stand as oneof the greatestcoaches in college basketball history. (Applause.)
　　Gloria Steiner. (Applause.) A trailblazing writer and feminist organizer, Gloria Steinem hasbeen atthe forefront of the fight for equality and social justice for more than to a broad rangeof initiatives and issues, from establishing Ms. Magazine and TakeOurDaughters to Work Day, to pushing for womenamp。rsquo。s selfempowerment and an end tosextrafficking. She has promotedlasting political and social change in America and her reporting and speaking, she hasshaped debates on the intersection of sex and race,brought critical problemsto national attention, and forged new opportunities for women inmedia. Gloria Steinem continues to move us all totake up the cause of reaching for a more justtomorrow. (Applause.)
　　Reverend . Vivian. (Applause.) Equipped only with courage and an overwhelmingmitment to socialjustice, the Reverend . Vivian was a stalwart activist on the marchtowardracial equality. Whether at a lunchcounter, on a Freedom Ride, or behind the bars of aprison cell, he wasunafraid to take bold action in the face of fierce resistance. By pushingchange through nonviolentdemonstration and advocacy, . Vivian established and lednumerousorganizations to support underserved individuals and munities. His legacy ofbating injustice will shineas an example for generations to e. (Applause.)
　　Patricia McGowan Wald. (Applause.) Patricia McGowan Wald made history as the first womanappointed to theUnited States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Rising toChief Judge of the Court, shealways strove to better understand the law and fairly apply leaving federal service, Judge Waldhelped institute standards for justice and the rule oflaw at the InternationalCriminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague. Hailed as amodel judge, she laid afoundation for countless women within the legal profession and helpedunveilthe humanity within the law. (Applause.)
　　Oprah G. Winfrey. (Applause.) Oprah G. Winfrey is a global media icon. When she launchedThe Oprah Winfrey Show in 1986, there were few women and even fewer women of color with a national platform to discuss theissues and events shaping our times. Butover the 25years that followed, Oprah Winfreyamp。rsquo。s innate gift for tapping intoour most fervent hopes anddeepest fears drew millions of viewers across everybackground, making her show the highestrated talk show in televisionhistory. Off screen, Oprah Winfrey hasused her influence to supportunderserved munities and to lift up the livesof young people especially young women around the world. In her story, we are reminded that no dreamcan be deferred when we refuseto let lifeamp。rsquo。s obstacles keep us down. (Applause.)
　　THE PRESIDENT: The Medal of Freedom honorees please. (Applause.)
　　Well, that concludes the formalpart of todayamp。rsquo。s ceremony. I want tothank all of you forbeing here. Obviously,we are deeply indebted to those who we honor here today. And weamp。rsquo。regoing to have an opportunity totake some pictures with the honorees and their familymembers.
　　The rest of you, I understand thefood here is pretty good. (Laughter.) SoI hope you enjoythe reception, and I hope we carry away from this a reminderof what JFK understood to be theessence of the American spirit that itamp。rsquo。srepresented here. And some of us may belesstalented, but we all have the opportunity to serve and to open peopleamp。rsquo。shearts and minds inour smaller orbits. So I hope everybody has been as inspired, as I have been, participatingandbeing with these people here today.
　　Thank you very much,everybody. (Applause.)