Soror Hattie McDaniel postage stamp initiative

[Aurora6]

Stamp carries message at McLain

CORY YOUNG / Tulsa World
Charles Waddell Chesnutt is commemorated in the 31st stamp in the U.S. Postal Service’s Black Heritage series.


By ALTHEA PETERSON World Staff Writer
2/28/2008


The newest entry in the Black Heritage series is unveiled there in hope that it will inspire students.


To carry on the future, local leaders hope that today's youth will remember the past.

For that reason, a new stamp featuring black author Charles Waddell Chesnutt was unveiled Wednesday at McLain High School for Science and Technology by the U.S.. Postal Service and Rudisill Regional Library.

The stamp is the 31st in the Black Heritage series of commemorative stamps. The series began in 1978 by honoring Harriet Tubman, said Beth Fisk, a Postal Service spokeswoman in Tulsa.

The stamp's release coincides with Black History Month, which is February.

"I hope students not only learn about the stamp and Charles Waddell Chesnutt but also hope they open their eyes to African-American history and how he changed the world," Fisk said.

The event was largely student-led, with artwork, music and readings by McLain students.

McLain senior Rainecia Clark, 17, said she hoped to read more about Chesnutt after the event.

"Everyone needs to know about their black history -- and history, period," she said. "You can learn a lot of things about yourself, which is important."

Sophomore Cara Washington, 15, was one of three McLain artists who drew sketches of Chesnutt for the ceremony.

Hearing more youths take an interest in historical black leaders such as Chesnutt is encouraging, said Barbara Eikner, treasurer of the Tulsa alumni chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho.

The sorority assisted with the event.

"I feel so very often the history of African-Americans needs to start in the schools," she said. "We need to get the teachers and the parents involved. . . . It's a wonderful opportunity for McLain and the students."

Keith Jemison of Rudisill Regional Library said that although Chesnutt might not be as famous as leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. or Malcolm X, his selection for a stamp might encourage students to learn more about him.

"It's always wonderful to read more and more about someone's lives because you may be inspired by them," he told the students. "We salute Charles Waddell Chesnutt for being that author who made a difference in African-American history and American history."


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Althea Peterson 581-8361
althea.peterson@tulsaworld.com

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/artic..._A9_hThen00274