‘Tireless’ advocate Clinton lauded

U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton was lauded as a champion of social and racial justice at the King Center’s “Salute to Greatness” dinner Saturday in Atlanta.

The New York Democrat and U.S. secretary of state-designate was among the featured guests at the civil right’s center major fund-raiser, held at the Hyatt Regency.

The banquet is one of a number of weekend events honoring the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Monday is a federal holiday given over to remembrances of the civil rights icon, who was assassinated in 1968.

“It’s not just remembering and celebrating; we must also act,” Clinton told the audience of 1,000 people. “Until every vote is counted and every American has health insurance and jobs, then it is up to all of us. As we commemorate MLK Day, we are called upon to treat this day as a day of service. We all have a part to play.”

Isaac Farris Jr., president of the King Center, lauded Clinton for her leadership, humanitarianism and “as a champion of needed social reforms.”

“Sen. Clinton has worked tirelessly throughout her career to advance racial justice, child welfare and health security for all Americans and human rights worldwide,” Farris said in prepared remarks.

Clinton, who the U.S. Senate will likely confirm next week as the nation’s top diplomat, has vowed that human rights will be a cornerstone of American foreign policy.

The wife of former President Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton ran unsuccessfully against U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for the Democratic nomination for president last year.

Obama will be sworn in Tuesday.

Hillary Clinton said the King Center remains a special place to her husband.

“That’s why it is so fitting that this dinner this evening should be on the eve of this unprecedented historic event —- the inauguration of Barack Obama. The election of Barack Obama is a big step closer to the realization of that dream. But that doesn’t let us off the hook. There is still more work to be done.”

The King Center also presented the corporate Salute to Greatness Award to S. Truett Cathy, the founder and chairman of the Chick-fil-A restaurant chain.

Farris cited Cathy’s “remarkable example of active compassion for young people through more than $25 million in scholarships, along with vital youth support programs, including camps and foster homes.”

Illness kept Cathy from attending.

—- Staff reporter Angela Tuck contributed to this story.