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The museum cited Obama's signature healthcare reform law,
which his successor President Donald Trump has vowed to repeal
and replace, restored diplomatic ties with Cuba and the Paris
climate change deal as key reasons for his selection.
"President Obama has embodied the definition of courage that my
grandfather cites in the opening lines of 'Profiles in Courage':
grace under pressure," Jack Schlossberg, the slain U.S.
president's grandson, said in a statement. "Throughout his two
terms in office, he represented all Americans with decency,
integrity, and an unshakeable commitment to the greater good."
The award takes its name from Kennedy's 1957 Pulitzer
Prize-winning book about eight U.S. Senators who took principled
stands on unpopular issues.
Previous winners include former presidents Gerald Ford and
George H.W. Bush; Gabrielle Giffords, the former U.S.
representative who left Congress after a gunman shot her in the
head; and John McCain, the U.S. senator and former prisoner of
war.
Obama will receive the award in a May 7 ceremony at the
waterfront Boston Kennedy library.
(Reporting by Scott Malone; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
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