President Barack Obama honored 17 Americans from fields including sciences, arts, politics, and human rights with the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Tuesday. Among those awarded were Willie Mays, Barbra Streisand, James Taylor, Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Stephen Sondheim, Steven Spielberg, and recently deceased baseball icon Yogi Berra. Obama praised the group as “extraordinary” during the ceremony. “Even by the standards of Medal of Freedom recipients, this is a class act.” The Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian honor bestowed by the president.
