WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg usually is on the receiving end of awards, but she’ll be handing out one in her name next week to a prominent philanthropist.
Agnes Gund, who has given millions of dollars to support criminal justice reform and reduce mass incarceration in the United States, is the first recipient of the Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Woman of Leadership Award.
The 86-year-old Ginsburg will present the award to Gund at a Valentine’s Day dinner at the Library of Congress. The award was established by the Dwight D. Opperman Foundation.
Gund, former president of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, sold the Roy Lichtenstein painting “Masterpiece” for $165 million in 2017 and created her Art for Justice Fund.
“I have worked most of my life to ensure that access to art should be a right, not a privilege, because it can open minds and inspire dreams,” Gund said, “With Art for Justice, that mission is intensified as we employ the arts to foster much-needed criminal justice reform.”
Last week, Ginsburg received the LBJ Foundation’s Liberty & Justice for All Award. On Friday, international legal groups will present her with the World Peace and Liberty Award. On Feb. 19, Diane von Furstenberg’s foundation will give Ginsburg its lifetime achievement award.