The 2015 class of recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom was announced by the White House on Monday. The group of 17 includes filmmaker Steven Spielberg, singers Barbra Streisand and James Taylor, and the late Yogi Berra.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian honor in the U.S. President Barack Obama will host a ceremony at the White House on Nov. 24 to recognize each person’s contribution to world peace or culture.
Berra, who died in September at age 90, is one of the greatest New York Yankees to take the diamond, if not one of the greatest players in the history of baseball. He was a 10-time World Series winner and joined the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972. But his name is known beyond the world of sports thanks to his famous Yogi-isms.
The other posthumous recipients are Shirley Chisholm, the first African-American woman elected to Congress; Billy Frank Jr., an advocate for the rights of Native Americans; and Minoru Yasui, a civil rights leader who challenged the military curfew imposed during World War II.
Berra is also not the only baseball legend who will be honored. Giants great Willie Mays will be honored for his contribution to the game. A veteran who served in the Army, The Say Hey Kid will forever be remembered for the most famous catch in baseball history.
Musicians on the list include Gloria Estefan and her husband, Emilio Estefan; violinist Itzhak Perlman; singer/songwriter Taylor and Streisand. Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim will also receive a medal.
Spielberg, whose Schindler’s List featured Perlman on the soundtrack, will get to add the medal to his collection of awards. He is a three-time Oscar winner, winning two for Schindler’s List and Best Director for Saving Private Ryan. In addition to his films, he will also be recognized for founding the USC Shoah Foundation.
Other recipients include former U.S. Rep. Lee Hamilton of Indiana; NASA mathematician Katherine G. Johnson; Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland; and former EPA Administrator William Ruckelshaus.