United States

Civil Rights Activist Dorothy Height Among 12 New Additions to Forever Stamps

Height will be featured on the 40th stamp in the Black Heritage series, according to a release from the Postal Service

Civil rights activist Dorothy Height, who dedicated her life to fighting for racial and gender equality, is among 12 new additions to the U.S. Postal Service's 2017 forever stamps. 

Height will be featured on the 40th stamp in the Black Heritage series, according to a release from the Postal Service. A Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, she was a leading member of the civil rights movement. Height also founded the National Women's Political Caucus with Gloria Steinem, Shirley Chisholm and Betty Friedan in 1971.

She worked with the likes of Martin Luther King Jr. and John Lewis on civil rights initiatives, too. 

[NATL] New Postal Service Stamps for 2017

"Although she rarely gained the recognition granted her male contemporaries, she became one of the most influential civil rights leaders of the 20th century," the organization said of Height. 

Also featured on one of the new stamps will be Robert Panara, "an influential teacher and a pioneer in the field of deaf studies."

Panara will be featured on the 16th stamp in the Distinguished Americans series with a photo of him signing the word "respect."

"During his 40-year teaching career, Panara inspired generations of students with his powerful use of American Sign Language," the Postal Service said.

The statehood anniversaries of Nebraska and Mississippi will be celebrated as part of the Statehood stamp series.

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"2017 will be an exciting year for the Postal Service’s stamp program," said Mary-Anne Penner, the director for stamp services in a statement. "This amazing collection of stamps features beautiful art, distinguished Americans and historic events."

Other forever stamps feature images of flowers, such as the "celebration boutonniere" and the "celebration corsage." Stamps paying tribute to nature and pollinators, like bees and butterflies, will also debut.

Henry David Thoreau, an acclaimed American thinker and writer, will also be featured on a 2017 forever stamp.

"With his personal example of simple living, his criticism of materialism and the questions he raises about the place of the individual in society and humanity's role in the natural world, Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) continues to inspire readers," the Postal Service said.

Ezra Jack Keats' book "The Snowy Day" will appear in a stamp booklet as well, along with a Christmas Carols booklet. Artist Andrew Wyeth's paintings will also be featured on a stamp.

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