Former President Bill Clinton headlined the annual Higginbotham Corporate Leadership Award Dinner on Sept. 16 in New York, where The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a nonprofit civil rights organization, honored Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs.
Qualcomm Inc., a wireless telecommunications research and development company, was recognized at the event for their commitment to global inclusion. The company’s Chief Executive Officer, Paul E. Jacobs, received the Lawyers’ Committee’s Higginbotham Corporate Leadership award for exemplary corporate leadership in advancing equal opportunity and diversity.
“Qualcomm is deeply honored to be recognized by the Lawyers’ Committee,” Jacobs said in a statement. “We believe that innovation accelerated by diversity is the way forward for any organization that wants to make a difference in the world. By embracing our unique perspectives, we all have the power to create, value, to extend our reach and to have a positive impact.”
First presented in 2000, the prestigious Higginbotham Corporate Leadership Award was named after Judge A. Leon Higginbotham Jr., a federal appeals court judge and civil rights advocate. Past recipients of the award include The New York Times Company, Time Warner and Fannie Mae, among others.
Clinton served as honorary chairman for the event and addressed nearly 750 attorneys and executives from the nation’s leading law firms and corporations.
“During his Administration and subsequently as Chairman of the Clinton Global Initiative, President Clinton has been hailed for his demonstrated commitment to racial justice and equal opportunity,” Lawyers’ Committee Executive Director Barbara Arnwine said in a statement. “He continues to highlight the critical need for the legal community and corporate America in engaging on social justice Issues.”
The Lawyers’ Committee was formed in 1963 following a request from President John F. Kennedy to involve private lawyers in providing legal services to stop racial discrimination. The organization aims to ensure civil rights in the areas of education, voting, employment opportunities, housing and lending, environmental justice and community development.
For more information about the Lawyers’ Committee, visit www.lawyerscommitte.org.