Civil Rights Icon Dorothy Height Is Getting Her Very Own Postage Stamp

Late civil rights leader Dorothy Height spent her life fighting for racial and gender equality and now she’s among the latest to be honored in the Black Heritage U.S. postage stamp series.

One of the most influential civil rights activists of our time, Height was an instrumental figure in much of the progress made in the endless pursuit of equal rights and fair treatment for women and people of color. In later years, among her many accomplishments, Height served as chairperson of the Executive Committee of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights. The group is the largest women’s civil rights organization in the country. 

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“2017 will be an exciting year for the Postal Service’s stamp program,” U.S. Postal Service Director Mary Anne Penne said in a statement. “This amazing collection of stamps features beautiful art, distinguished Americans and historic events.”

The illustration on the postage stamp is inspired by a photo of Height taken by photographer Lateef Mangum in 2009. The lifelong activist passed away in 2010 at the age of 98.