2018
Vladimir Kara-Murza
Introduction by Ambassador William J. Burns
Without brave individuals like Anna Politkovskaya… without courageous exemplars like Vladimir Kara-Murza, societies wither and drift.
Their fearlessness should give us the hope and courage to stand up for justice and address the flaws and challenges of our countries and our world. Authoritarians traffic in fear and depriving them of that weapon is our surest path to a better future. We all owe an enormous debt to those who show us the way, at grave personal risk, and we honor them not only by awards like this one, but by how we live their examples.