Abner Mikva to speak at Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum
Recipient of Presidential Medal of Freedom discusses his career and the Mikva Challenge on July 14

 

[July 11, 2015]  SPRINGFIELD – Abner Mikva, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom for a career that saw him serve in all three branches of government, will discuss his accomplishments and efforts to engage youth in public service on July 14 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

Judge Mikva, with historian Mark DePue as moderator, will take questions from the audience after his remarks.

“Abner Mikva’s life of public service has taken him from Congress to the federal bench to the White House. He’s a part of American history, and now our audience will have an opportunity to talk with him directly,” said Eileen Mackevich, Executive Director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

The free event takes place at 6:30 p.m. in the Multi-Purpose Room of the Library (112 North Sixth Street, Springfield). Visit www.presidentlincoln.illinois.gov and click on “Special Event Reservations.”

Mikva represented Chicago in Congress from 1969-1973, and again in 1975-1979. He was then named as a federal judge, serving until 1994 when he became White House counsel to President Bill Clinton. He also taught at Northwestern University and at the University of Chicago.

Mikva received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, in 2014, along with Meryl Streep, Stephen Sondheim and Tom Brokaw. When President Obama awarded the medal, he said: “Ab transcends any single moment in recent political history. But he had a hand in shaping some of the best of it.”

Mikva, along with his wife, Zoe, founded the Mikva Challenge in 1997. It began by reaching out to students in just four schools but has now grown to serve 115 schools in the Chicago area, engaging students in elections, policy-making, and community problem-solving. Organizations in Los Angeles and Washington are replicating the Mikva Challenge’s programming.

Mikva has donated his papers to the Lincoln Presidential Library and has been interviewed for the library’s Oral History Program.

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is the world’s foremost institution dedicated to telling the story of America’s greatest president. It combines creative showmanship, serious scholarship, and an unmatched collection of Lincoln artifacts and documents, as well as Illinos historical collections.

[Chris Wills, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum]