Angelina Jolie Has Been Made An Honorary Dame
Angelina Jolie recently made headlines when she received one of the highest honors by the British Establishment. Jolie received the honorary title of a Dame, which is a female version of a knight, during the annual British Honors. This event officially marks Queen Elizabeth’s birthday, which is today (June 14). However, the only down side of receiving the title is that Jolie is not an actual British citizen. As such, she does not get the full title of being a Dame.
Angelina Jolie received this title due to her effort of raising global awareness for violence against women as the co-founder of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative. Jolie said:
“To receive an honor related to foreign policy means a great deal to me, as it is what I wish to dedicate my working life to working on PVSI, and with survivors of rape is an honor in itself. I know that succeeding in our goals will take a lifetime, and I am dedicated to it for all of mine.”
This award came after Jolie just spent four days gathering participants from Somalia to Kosovo to discuss sexual violence. Jolie, who co-hosted the summit with British Foreign Secretary William Hague, said, “The gathering had made progress in better prosecuting offenders and protecting victims.”
Hague has also said this about Angelina Jolie:
“She is a pleasure to work with, and my admiration for her work has grown even greater over the last two years.”
At the closing of the conference, 155 countries — including including the US and Britain — signed a declaration of commitment to end sexual violence in conflict and have pledged funds to support the cause.
Jolie explained:
“I believe that one of the outcomes of this summit is that this subject is now firmly on top of the table of international diplomacy, and we will work to ensure that is stays there.”
The honor was one of hundreds the Queen handed out as part of her annual British Honors. The list recognizes people who provide a service to their community or national life.
However, Angelina Jolie isn’t the only American citizen to be given an honorary title by the British. Movie director Steven Spielberg, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and former President Ronald Reagan also received honors as well. Of course, none of them can formally introduce themselves as “Sir” either because of the citizenship. Still, it’s impressive that Angelina Jolie has received one of the world’s highest honors.
[Image Via 1017theone.ca ]
