During his diamond jubilee tour of commonwealth nations from March 2 to 8, Britain’s Prince Harry will visit Jamaica, Belize and the Bahamas.
On his visit to Jamaica, the royal representative plans to stop into numerous locales there; regale the island’s 50th anniversary of independence and meet with two significant personalities – Portia Simpson-Miller, the first, elected, female leader of the country and Usain Bolt, its Olympic champion.
Amidst plans announced by the prime minister to remove his grandmother as sovereign head of Jamaica, 27-year-old Harry is slated to meet her when he visits.
On the day of her inauguration Simpson Miller expressed a desire to “detach from the monarchy” to make way for a republic form of government.
A goodwill ambassador for the Olympics slated to be held in his country this summer, Harry also wants to visit with the world’s fastest man at his training camp.
Soon after his itinerary was announced rumors circulated that the prince might challenge the athlete to a race when he visits him at his training facility at the University of the West Indies.
“We’re hoping he (Bolt) will teach him (Harry) how to start,” Prince Harry’s private secretary Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton told a U.K. publication, The Daily Mail.
“I don’t think they will hare off round the track together, thankfully,” she added.
USPS Unveils Black Heritage ‘Forever’ Stamp
The United States Postal Service issued a new postage stamp to kick-off Black History Month and also commemorate the life of publisher John H. Johnson.
On Feb. 1, USPS added the Chicago-native as the 35th honoree in the Black Heritage stamp series.
The stamp, priced ‘forever’ to fulfill delivery despite postal rate increases compliments the Black Heritage series which debuted in 1978 and is among the postal services’ most popular.
This month, post offices will be stocked with stamps bearing the likeness of the Chicago-native who founded Johnson Publishing Company and introduced Ebony and Jet magazines, two national publications which highlighted the achievements of Blacks throughout the world.
Johnson lauded athletes, actors, activists, politicians, scientists, celebrities, and average individuals whose efforts enhanced the profile of Africans throughout the globe.
The monthly and weekly publications attracted audiences previously deprived of positive images focusing on Africans, African-Americans and Caribbean nationals.
Many readers reflect reading stories and reflecting their first images of Marcus Mosiah Garvey, W.E.B. Dubois, Nelson Mandela and others on the pages of those two publications.
Photo-stories detailing the lifestyle of athletes such as Arthur Ashe, singer Mahalia Jackson, Muhammad Ali, and others were given unprecedented coverage and attention when traditional media limited space and frequency in recognizing Black achievers.
“John Johnson’s unyielding commitment to journalistic excellence and his unparalleled reporting on African-American culture have distinguished him as one of America’s greatest publishers,” USPS Chicago Senior Plant Manager Anthony Vaughan said.
“I’m immensely proud that my father and his life’s passion are being recognized in such a high honor as the Black Heritage Stamp,” Linda Johnson Rice.
“His legacy lives on in all whom he touched and in the work we continue to do daily.”
Roy Betts, a USPS communications officer, said Americans nominate between 40,000 to 50,000 people and events each year for consideration for commemorative stamps.
A citizen review committee considers the requests and pares them down to a list of 20 to 25 nominees, and those recommendations are sent to the postmaster general, who makes the final decision.
Past honorees in the series,: Harriet Tubman, Duke Ellington, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Madam C.J. Walker, Jackie Robinson, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Barbara Jordan among others.
Catch You On The Inside!
