Christopher Reeve receives Chilean honor

SANTIAGO, Chile, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Actor Christopher Reeve on Wednesday received the highest honor bestowed upon foreigners by the Chilean government in honor of his human rights activism.

Reeve was given the Grand Cross of the Bernardo O'Higgins Order in recognition of the 1987 visit he made to Chile to organize a protest march in support of 77 Chilean actors who at the time were threatened by the military regime of Gen. Augusto Pinochet.

"Christopher Reeve was one of those human beings who in the zenith of their careers were willing to raise their voices for human rights in Chile, during some of the darkest years of our history and we've come to express our gratefulness with this distinction," said Maria Soledad Alvear, Chilean foreign secretary, during a ceremony at Reeves' Bedford, N.Y., home.

Reeve said the trip forever changed how he viewed his profession.

"I never again accepted censorship," Reeve said. "I've since done what I wanted and said what I've felt."

The actor, most famous for starring in the "Superman" films, heads up the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, which he founded after a 1995 accident left him paralyzed.