Dr. Anthony Fauci, the Brooklyn-born member of the White House coronavirus task force, was honored Tuesday as a borough “COVID Hero” for his role in providing guidance during the pandemic.
“It is a privilege to recognize a widely-admired public health official and a proud son of Brooklyn, Dr. Anthony Fauci, as one of our COVID Heroes,” Borough President Eric Adams said in a statement.
“Since the beginning of this pandemic, Dr. Fauci has been a reassuring champion of science and reason who has navigated our nation through turbulent times,” Adams continued.
“Dr. Fauci is the best of what public service can be, and we are so proud to be able to welcome him back (virtually) to his home borough as we thank him for his heroic and life-saving leadership,” he added.
The 79-year-old director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases was expected to take part in a virtual ceremony in his honor, according to Adams’ office.
Fauci has faced criticism from President Trump, who has called the top US infectious diseases expert a “disaster.”
“People are tired of hearing Fauci and all these idiots, these people that have gotten it wrong. Fauci is a nice guy,” Trump said last month, indicating he wanted to fire him but couldn’t because of potential public outrage.
“If I’d listened to him, we’d have 500,000 deaths,” the president said in the call with his campaign staff.
Fauci is the latest person to receive recognition by Brooklyn for making a difference during the outbreak.
In September, Adams honored 87 “COVID Everyday Heroes,” including Olga Manns, 76, who helped run a soup kitchen and food pantry out of her church for 15 years and continued to do so during the health crisis, WPIX reported.