File photo of Billy Frank Jr. in 2011 at a ceremony for the removal of dams on Washington state's Elwha River. The well known fishing rights activist died in 2014 at the age of 83.
Katie Campbell / EarthFix
The White House announced Monday that two Northwestern activists will receive posthumous Medals of Freedom.
President Barack Obama will present the awards to Billy Frank Jr., Minoru Yasui, William D. Ruckelshaus and 14 other people at a ceremony Nov. 24.
Frank was a champion of tribal fishing rights in the Northwest, and worked throughout his life for the restoration of salmon habitat.
He died last year at the age of 83.
The Nisqually tribal fisherman came to public notice in the 1960s and early ‘70s during what is now known as the Northwest “Fish Wars.” Frank was arrested more than 50 times during protests for tribal fishing rights.
His activism and that of others resulted in a landmark court decision in 1974 called the Boldt Decision. A federal judge ruled that 20 Western Washington tribes are entitled to half of the annual fish harvest in their area.
In its announcement this morning, the White House describes Frank as a "tireless advocate for Indian treaty rights and environmental stewardship."
"Frank left in his wake an Indian Country strengthened by greater sovereignty and a nation fortified by his example of service to one’s community, his humility and his dedication to the principles of human rights and environmental sustainability," the release said.
Yasui was the first Japanese American to graduate from the University of Oregon School of Law in 1939 and the first Japanese American member of the Oregon State Bar.
During World War II, Yasui spent nine months in solitary confinement at Multnomah County jail as he battled the federal government in court over military curfews. The curfews made it a federal crime for Americans of German, Italian or Japanese ancestry to be out at night.
Yasui argued that the curfews were unconstitutional. Though he was never able to get his criminal charges overturned, he pursued the case until his death in 1986 and used his legal training in many other civil rights cases.
William D. Ruckelshaus was the first and fifth administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, under Presidents Nixon and Reagan. Among the EPA's key achievements under his leadership was a nationwide ban on the pesticide DDT. Later in life, he lived and taught in Washington state.
All three Northwestern recipients will be honored with the Medal of Freedom next week alongside people like legendary baseball player and manager Yogi Berra, composer Stephen Sondheim and film director Steven Spielberg.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.