THE LOQUITUR 50 Bono: Be the young voice of Africa

JAMIE HUFNAGLE NEWS EDITOR JLH729@CABRINI EDU

VICKIE PAPAGEORGE COPY EDITOR VP724@CABRINI EDU

Irish rock star and humanitarian Bono received the Liberty Medal, Philadelphia’s most prestigious award, at a ceremony at the National Constitution Center on Thursday, Sept. 27. He was honored for his efforts to reduce extreme poverty and beat back AIDS in Africa. The organization he founded in 2002, DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa), shared the award.

“He has shown that it is impossible for decent men and women to be subjected to such inequity and injustice only to stand idly by,” President George H.W. Bush said before presenting Bono with the award.

The Liberty Medal annually honors individuals or organizations worldwide who have demonstrated leadership and vision in the pursuit of liberty of conscience or freedom from oppres- sion, ignorance or deprivation. This award is accompanied by a $100,000 prize, which Bono said will be donated to the organization.

In a press conference before the ceremony, executive director of DATA Jamie Drummond spoke about the organization and the honor that both he and Bono would be receiving.

“As you can tell from my accent, I’m not American, nor is Bono, but we get what an honor this is,” Drummond said.

As the ceremony began, a range of performers took the stage in an effort to honor the cause and urge Americans to