Guess Who’s In Your Mailbox?

Posted on by under education, Free Press Issues, History, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary, Tributes

Earlier this month I came across a news story that actually … wait for it … brought a huge smile to my face! 😊  You all know who Toni Morrison is, right?  She’s the acclaimed author who became the first African American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993, and she also won a Pulitzer Prize for perhaps her best known book, Beloved, in 1987.  In 2012, President Barack Obama had the honour of presenting Ms. Morrison with the Presidential Medal of Freedom!  Sadly, Ms. Morrison died in 2019, but in her 88 years on this earth, she left a legacy that will last for as long as humans live on the planet.

But wait, I’m not done!  In fact, none of the above is what I set out to write about, for earlier this month it was announced that Toni Morrison will be featured on a U.S. Postal Service stamp!!!

The photo above is part of a 1997 photo shoot done for her cover on Time Magazine on January 19, 1998.

At the unveiling ceremony, held at Princeton University, where Ms. Morrison taught from 1989 to 2006, a letter from former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama was read …

“Toni told fundamental truths about our country and the human condition, but she didn’t just reflect what was true. She helped generations of Black Americans reimagine what was possible. That’s why we return to her stories again and again, finding new meaning each time.”

Sadly, many of Ms. Morrison’s books have been banned around the country in the attempt to whitewash history, to withhold from future generations an understanding of how we got where we are today, of the struggles for the very survival of an entire group of people based solely on the colour of their skin.  I have to wonder, since at least two of Ms. Morrison’s books, Beloved and The Bluest Eye, are banned in Florida, if Governor DeSantis will try to stop the U.S. Postal Service from selling the Forever Stamp with Ms. Morrison’s image in the state?

I, for one, am pleased and proud to see Ms. Morrison on the Forever Stamp.  It’s a move that should have happened long ago, but … better late than never.

20 thoughts on “Guess Who’s In Your Mailbox?”

  1. Wow, it’s amazing to see Toni Morrison’s legacy continue to be celebrated even after her passing. She truly was a trailblazer in the literary world and an inspiration to many. I think it’s great that the U.S. Postal Service is recognizing her contributions with a stamp. It’s important to remember and honor those who have made significant contributions to society. My question is, do you think there are other individuals who deserve to be featured on a U.S. Postal Service stamp? If so, who would you choose?

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    • I fully agree! Oh yes, I absolutely think there are others who deserve to be featured on the U.S. Postal Stamp. I might start with Rosa Parks, Ruby Bridges, MLK, Malcolm X, and I could probably come up with a list of 250 names if I tried!

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  4. Well, after reading this morning’s news of the Florida school principal forced to resign after his pupils were shown a picture of Michelangelo’s David, I just wait to see what’s banned next. Thinking, perhaps?

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  6. I can’t believe the US has become a country banning books. Are they burning them soon? 😡 I’ve never Read Toni Morrison but had the chance to read some of Maya Angelous another great author. 🤗

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  8. So glad to see that lovely image of the brilliant Toni Morrison. Thanks, Jill. It made me wonder how many other Black women have appeared on US postage stamps, and there are more than I expected. Though it should have been much earlier, the first stamp honored Harriet Tubman in 1978, when the US Postal Service initiated a Black Heritage Series. There are women (I don’t think all from that series) from many aspects of American life. Made me feel we’re now going through the “one-step back” stage of our history; it’s time for more than two steps forward! http://www.esperstamps.org.

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    • Thank You, Annie! Fascinating! I do remember when Harriet Tubman was so honoured. Like you, I’ve felt for some time that we are taking multiple steps backward in many ways. Misogyny, like racism, Islamophobia, and homophobia are on the rise, partly due, I believe to the religious ‘right’ who seem to have a very narrow-minded view of society and what it should be. Sigh.

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  9. Jill, well deserved. Her voice needs to heard through her writing. If her work is banned that is a shame. Hopefully, the stamp notoriety will get people to ask questions, who is this woman? Keith

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