Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage

The Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage is an international award established in 2010 by the Georgia Institute of Technology in recognition of the late Ivan Allen Jr. A Georgia Tech alumnus, Allen became a pivotal leader during America's struggle for racial integration during the 1960s. While mayor of Atlanta, Georgia, USA (1962–1970), Allen risked his place in society, his political future, and his life when he testified before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee in support of what became the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage recognizes individuals who, like Mayor Allen, stand up for moral principles and render service to humanity without regard for personal or professional peril. Recipients positively affect public discourse in spite of the risk to their careers, their livelihoods, and even their lives. The Prize is funded in perpetuity by a grant from the Wilbur and Hilda Glenn Family Foundation. It was awarded for the first time on March 15, 2011, replacing the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Progress and Service, which had been awarded from 2001–2010 to prominent Georgians.

Prominent human rights attorney Beatrice Mtetwa has been named recipient of the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage, an award given to individuals who, by asserting moral principle, have positively affected public discourse at the risk of their careers, livelihoods, and sometimes lives.

The Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage will be presented to Beatrice Mtetwa during a ceremony on the Georgia Tech campus on November 13, 2014. The presentation of this 2014 award is especially significant as Mtetwa, an advocate for women’s equality and advancement, will be the first woman to receive the prize. It also comes at a time when government leaders in Zimbabwe are persecuting human rights defenders such as Mtetwa.

On April 3, 2013, Congressman John Lewis, an icon of American Civil Rights was honored as the third recipient of the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage.

Lewis was one of the "Big Six" leaders of the Civil Rights Movement. He was the keynote speaker for the 1963 March on Washington, of which he was a core architect. Lewis' impact on civil rights for African-Americans has included advocating for desegregation laws and voters’ rights. A founding member and president of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Lewis planned and led many of their activities. His personal courage was first evident when he led student sit-ins that resulted in the public accommodation of African-Americans at Nashville restaurants. He was one of the original 13 Freedom Riders who challenged legally sanctioned segregation on interstate buses. Despite repeated attacks on his dignity, physical beatings, and arrests, Lewis has remained staunchly committed to nonviolent work for social change throughout his life.

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