On January 6, 1941, President Roosevelt proclaimed that four freedoms are essential to a flourishing democracy: freedom of speech and expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. Each year, to encourage leadership in fulfilling President Roosevelt's vision of the Four Freedoms, the Roosevelt Institute honors outstanding individuals who have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to these ideals. Among the laureates have been Presidents Truman, Kennedy, Carter, and Clinton, Averell Harriman, Coretta Scott King, Elie Wiesel, Thomas P. O'Neill, William Brennan, Mike Mansfield, H.R.H. Princess Juliana of the Netherlands, Vaclav Havel, Mikhail Gorbachev, the Dalai Lama, H.M. Juan Carlos of Spain, and Shimon Peres. The impressive ceremonies that mark the awarding of the Four Freedom medals are held in alternate years in Hyde Park, New York and Middelburg, the Netherlands.

Click here for a list of Four Freedoms Medal recipients.