[applause] minoru yasui. [applause] from the fruit farms of oregon to the hallowed halls of the supreme court, minoru yasui devoted his life to fighting for basic human right's and the fair and equal treatment of every american. challenging the military curfew placed on japanese-americans during world war ii, he brought critical attention to the issue and paved the way for all americans to stand as full and equal citizens. minoru yasui's example endures as a reminder as the power of one voice for justice. [applause] president obama: ladies and gentlemen, give them a big round of applause. 2015 presidential medal of freedom winners. this is an extraordinary group. even by the standards of medal of freedom recipients, this is a class act. we are just reminded when we see these individuals here on the stage, you know, what an incredible tapestry this country is. and what a great blessing to be asa nation where individuals diverse, from as wildly different backgrounds, can help to shape our dreams, how we live to

lori yasui, accepting for minoru yasui. [applause] ♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states and mrs. michelle obama. [applause] president obama: hello, everybody. please, thank you. thank you. everybody, please have a seat. welcome to the white house, everybody. a bunch of people were saying i was pretty busy today, which is true. but this, this is a fun kind of busy, right here. extraordinary people. innovators, artists, and leaders who contribute to america's strength as a nation. we offer them our highest civilian honor, the presidential medal of freedom. [applause] let me tell you just a little bit about them, although i suspect people here already know their stories. growing up in west virginia, katherine johnson counted everything. she counted steps, dishes, the distance to the church. by 10 years old, she was in high school. by 18 she graduated from college with degrees in math and french. as an african-american woman, job options were limited. but she was eventually hired as one of several femal

minoru yasui now recognized for his defense of the ideals of democracy embodied in our constitution.y this week about this honor. his daughter and granddaughter tell us they can't help but note that our country is again talking about registries and id cards. and limits for certain groups of people. his daughter lori told us his daughter would be out in the streets anywhere he could be heard to say that this is wrong. if you are feeling outrage or anxious by what is happening right now in our politics, i won't try to talk you out of it. you are hearing really the ghost of history. what's going on right now, it's ugly stuff. but take a little heart. take a measure of optimism and see that yasui persists. we still got heroes. that does it for us tonight. we'll see you again tomorrow. now it's time for "the last word." good evening. >> good evening. >>> well, french president francois hollande will meet with president obama at the white house tomorrow to discuss the fight against islamic state and you can be sure, i mean, absolutely sure, right now, that most of the news media will judge

[applause] minoru yasui, received by lori yasui.ause] from the fruit farms of oregon how loopholes of the supreme court, he has fought for the fair and equal treatment of every human. challenging the military cure ew placed onf japanese-americans in world war ii, he stood up for everyone. he is a reminder of the power of one voice echoing for justice. [applause] president obama: give them a big round of applause. these are our presidential medal of freedom winners. [applause] president obama: this is an extraordinary group. even by the standards of medal of freedom recipients. this is a class act. we are just reminded when we see these individuals here on the an incredible tapestry this country is. what a great blessing to be in a nation where individuals as diverse, as wildly different backgrounds can help to shape our dreams, how we live together, help to define justice and freedom, and love. what is bestesent in us and we are very, very proud to celebrate them here today. my understanding is there is a pretty good food in the whi