Dorothy Height Honored On U.S. Postal Stamp
The civil rights icon is the 40th addition in the "Black Heritage" commemorative Forever Stamp series.
Written By NewsOne Staff
n some Black History Month news we all can use, celebrated civil rights icon Dorothy Height has been commemorated with a Forever Stamp, NBC News reports.
Height is the 40th addition to the “Black Heritage” series. She is also the 15th woman to receive a commemorative heritage stam
“The Dorothy Height Forever stamp will serve as a lasting tribute to her life and legacy of seeking equality and justice for all Americans, regardless of ethnicity, gender or race,” the United States Postal Service wrote in a released statement.
Born in Richmond, Virginia in 1912, Height was a leading advocate for the disenfranchised. She began her trailblazing path as a young woman in the ’50s, marching against lynchings and the use of excessive force by law enforcement.
Height organized the March on Washington alongside Dr. Martin Luther King in 1963 and also served as a National President of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. The service organization was founded in 1913 by 22 Black women on the campus of Howard University and recently celebrated 104 years on January 13.
Height also served as president of the National Council of Negro Women and co-founded the National Women’s Political Caucus.
President Obama once called her the “godmother of civil rights.” In 1994, President Clinton awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom; she later received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2014.
Height died on April 20, 2010 at the age of 98. Her funeral was attended by political leaders and activists, including then President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Jesse Jackson and Hillary Clinton.
During a livestreamed ceremony hosted by the U.S. Postal Service on Wednesday, Rep. John Lewis, a civil rights titan in his own right, spoke eloquently about the impact of Height’s legacy:
“She was a mover and a shaker. She didn’t take no for an answer. She was always on point. She was insistent and persistent,” he said. “She stood for the timeless values that make this country great. Equality, justice and liberty.”
SOURCE: NBC News