Year of the Rat Stamp Kicks Off Series That Runs Through 2019

The United States Post Office announced the other day that the “Year of the Rat Stamp Kicks Off Series That Runs Through 2019”

“SAN FRANCISCO, CA — In observance of the Chinese New Year, the U.S. Postal Service will debut a new stamp series for the 12 different animals in the Chinese calendar. The series will continue through 2019. The first 41-cent stamp in the series is for the Year of the Rat, which begins Feb. 7, 2008 and ends Jan. 25, 2009… The rat is the first of 12 animals associated with the Chinese calendar. According to legend, the animals raced across a river to determine their order in the cycle. The rat crossed by riding on the back of the ox, jumping ahead at the last minute to win the race. “The start of the Lunar New Year is the biggest holiday of the year for more than 25 percent of the people in the world.” said Katherine C. Tobin, member of the U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors, who will dedicate the stamp. “It is a time of great celebration and reflection for many millions of Americans, including our nation’s oldest Chinese-American community here in San Francisco.”

I’m not a stamp collector, but I think this is pretty cool! Is this the first stamp series to celebrate or commemorate Asian Americans in any way? I did read recently, but did not report, that there was a movement to have a U.S. stamp to commemorate the over 30,000 Japanese-Americans who volunteered during WWII despite family and friends’ internment.