The United States Postal Service observes the two most important festivals—or Eids—in the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha with a special dedication ceremony for the new Eid stamp.

Like other stamps in the Postal Service’s Holiday Celebrations series, the Eid stamp is being issued as a Forever stamp. Forever stamps are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail one-ounce price.

Who:

• Joseph W. Meimann, USPS Louisville, KY, Postmaster
• Donald Lassere, President and Chief Executive Officer, Muhammad Ali Center
• Ambassador Shabazz; Eldest daughter; Malcolm X Shabazz and Dr. Betty Shabazz
• Greg Fischer, Mayor of Louisville
• Attica Scott, State Representative
• Bryan Warren, Director of Globalization, Louisville Metro Government
• Iman Abass, 4^th Grade Student, Blue Lick Elementary
• Cozad Terry Taylor, Former Executive Director, Interfaith Paths to Peace
• Montford Point Marine Association
• Humanity Passport Project Greater Community Choir

Where:

Muhammad Ali Center
144 North Sixth Street
Louisville, KY 40202

When:

Monday, June 13, 2016; 11:00 a.m. EST

Background:

The U.S. Postal Service® has issued stamps to commemorate these two Islamic holidays since 2001. The first Eid stamp, featuring gold calligraphy on a blue background, was issued on September 1, 2001. A new Eid stamp with gold calligraphy against a reddish background debuted in 2011 and was reissued with a green background in 2013. All Eid issuances to date have featured the work of world-renowned calligrapher Mohamed Zakariya of Arlington, Virginia.

Zakariya created the gold-colored calligraphy on this stamp. The script reads Eidukum mubarak, “May your Eid be bountiful (or blessed).” The calligraphy on previous Eid stamps issued by the U.S. Postal Service has read Eid mubarak, “may the religious holiday be blessed,” with the “your” implied, but Zakariya added the word to this new stamp to give the text more body within a horizontal frame.

In 2016, Eid al-Fitr will be celebrated in North America on July 6 and Eid al-Adha will be celebrated on Sept. 12. In 2017, Eid al-Fitr will be celebrated in North America on June 25 and Eid al-Adha will be celebrated on Sept 1. (These dates, which are based on geographical location and predicted sightings of the moon, are preliminary and may vary slightly as each festival approaches.)

Find more information about the new stamp at usps.com/stamps, facebook.com/uspsstamps or uspsstamps.com

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and usps.com/postalfacts.

CONTACTS

Louisville: Susan Wright
susan.w.wright@usps.gov
502.416.2119
National: Roy Betts
roy.a.betts@usps.gov
202.268.3207

Muhammad Ali Center: Jeanie Kahnke
jkahnke@alicenter.org
502.992.5301