CALLS FOR MUHAMMAD ALI STAMP
He may have been the self-titled ‘greatest’, but it may come as a surprise to hear that the USA has yet to issue a stamp celebrating the life of boxer Muhammad Ali. Now his widow and prominent politicians are calling on the US Postal Service to ‘give the champ the stamp’.
Muhammad Ali, who passed away in June 2016, is considered by many to be the greatest boxer of all time and was named Personality of the Century by the BBC in 1999. His views on race and politics, perhaps most notably his opposition to the war in Vietnam, meant he was banned from boxing for four years at the peak of his powers and, according to reports, was closely monitored by the FBI.
The ‘give the champ the stamp’ campaign is being backed by Ali’s widow Lonnie Ali and Louisville Mayor Greg Fisher, and is set to use social media to spread the message. The Louiseville-based website Courier Journal quoted Fisher as saying: ‘The U.S. Postal Service stamp program honours members, extraordinary individuals who have contributed to American Society, history, culture and environment. Muhammad Ali more than meets the criteria in place.’
Any person depicted on a US stamp must have died at least three years prior to the stamp being issued, and with Ali having passed away in 2016 after a long battle with Parkinson’s Disease, a stamp could no wbe issued. Such is the influence of the outspoken sportman, he has already appeared on stamps from countries including Austria and a host of African nations.
So why hasn’t Ali been honoured on a US stamp already? Does it come down to politics and his views which many thought were controversial? Is there a more innocent reason for his absence from US letters? Perhaps it’s appropraite for us to leave the final word to the great man himself, who once said: ‘I should be a postage stamp, because that’s the only way I’ll ever get licked. I’m beautiful. I’m fast. I’m so mean I make medicine sick. I can’t possibly be beat.’