On Friday, May 10th at The Roosevelt Hotel, The Common Good, along with founder Patricia Duff, presented the fifth annual Common Good Forum & American Spirit Awards, New York’s premiere ideas and issues forum, presenting headline issues and the most important, forward-looking ideas affecting public policy.
After a lively discussion on the rule of law, corruption and the abuse of power, Former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara received the American Spirit Award for Distinguished Public Service and Magnitsky Act Advocate Bill Browder received the American Spirit Award for Citizen Activism.
NBC News’ Tom Brokaw presented the Courage in Journalism Award to Lesley Stahl and Sir Harry Evans in a moving tribute and discussion featuring the three renowned journalists.
Stephanie Ruhle, MSNBC Host; Former Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO); Senator Doug Jones (D-AL); Former Congresswoman Mia Love (R-UT); Former Congressman Steve Israel (D-NY); Ari Melber, MSNBC Host; Nicole Austin-Hillery, Human Rights Watch Executive Director; Former Deputy Secretary of State Ambassador Bill Burns; Former NATO Ambassador Nicholas Burns; Alan Schwartz, Guggenheim Partners CEO; Michael Waldman, Brennan Center Chief; and Former Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-CA), Woodrow Wilson Center CEO also spoke at the event, along with several other top world leaders.
Teenage climate change activists Alexandria Villasenor and Jamie Margolin were each presented with a $2,500 scholarship, known as the Changemaker Scholarship, for their dedication to the fight for global climate change policies.