Bono & DATA
The 2024 Liberty Medal Ceremony
The National Constitution Center has honored renowned documentary filmmaker Ken Burns for illuminating the nation’s greatest triumphs and tragedies.
The National Constitution Center’s 2007 Liberty Medal was awarded jointly to Bono, U2 lead singer and activist, and DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa), the advocacy organization he co-founded to combat poverty and disease in Africa. The prestigious Medal, and its accompanying $100,000 prize, recognizes Bono and DATA’s groundbreaking work in raising awareness about and spurring a global response to the crisis of AIDS and extreme poverty in Africa. The public ceremony took place on Thursday, September 27, 2007 at the National Constitution Center on Philadelphia’s Independence Mall. The prize money will be donated to DATA.
DATA has helped focus public attention on how to beat AIDS and extreme poverty in Africa by working closely with politicians, the media and celebrities. In 2005, DATA and campaigners around the world helped persuade the G8 nations to reach an unprecedented agreement that included $25 billion in additional development assistance for Africa by 2010, broad debt cancellation, universal access to education, and near universal access to AIDS and malaria treatment and prevention. DATA is monitoring the G8's progress on keeping these commitments and holding government leaders to public account. If kept, these promises will save millions of lives and mark a turning point in the West's relationship with Africa.
