Oprah Winfrey, Harry Belafonte honored by Harvard

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (AP) _ Oprah Winfrey and singer Harry Belafonte were among those honored at Harvard University for their contributions to African-American culture.

Winfrey also accepted a posthumous award at Tuesday’s ceremony for poet Maya Angelou, who died earlier this year.

The university’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research presented its annual W.E.B. Du Bois Medals to eight honorees, including British architect David Adjaye, U.S. Rep. John Lewis, “12 Years a Slave” director Steve McQueen, “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal” creator Shonda Rhimes, and movie producer Harvey Weinstein.

The medal has been awarded since 2000 and is Harvard’s highest honor in the field of African and African American Studies.

Du Bois was a Massachusetts native and Harvard graduate and scholar who founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.