On October 1, 1996, Congress declared Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, better known as Mother Teresa, an honorary citizen of the United States. A native of what is now the Republic of Macedonia, the Roman Catholic nun spent a lifetime helping orphaned and abandoned children, the poor, the sick, and the dying in regions throughout the world, including the United States.
Only a handful of non-citizens have been declared honorary U.S. citizens. According to Congress, it is “an extraordinary honor not lightly conferred nor frequently granted.” The other honorary citizens are:
- Winston Churchill (1963), the great British statesmen whose “bravery, charity and valor, both in war and in peace, have been a flame of inspiration in freedom’s darkest hour,” as President Kennedy put it.
- Raoul Wallenberg (1981), the Swedish businessman who risked his life to save tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews from the Nazis, and who died after being imprisoned by Soviet authorities.
- William Penn (1984), the English Quaker who in 1681 founded Pennsylvania to carry out an experiment based upon representative government, and his wife, Hannah Penn, who administered the Province of Pennsylvania for six years.
- The Marquis de Lafayette (2002), the French soldier and statesman who fought alongside American Patriots during the Revolutionary War. An American flag flies over his grave in Paris.
- Casimir Pulaski (2009), the Polish soldier and nobleman who fought in the Revolutionary War and became known as “the father of the American cavalry.” He died of wounds at the siege of Savannah in Georgia.
Every day, Bill Bennett provides via email--for free--a reading from his American Patriot's Almanac. You’ll read about heroes, their achievements, and key events that took place “On This Day” in American history. Click here to subscribe.
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