# 5830 - 2024 First-Class Forever Stamp - Constance Baker Motley

US #5830
2024 Constance Baker Motley – Black Heritage Series

• Honors Black politician, civil rights activist, and judge Constance Baker Motley (she was also the first Black woman to argue a case before the US Supreme Court)
• The 47th stamp in the Black Heritage series

Stamp Category:  Commemorative
Series:  Black Heritage
Value:  68¢ First Class Mail Rate (Forever)
First Day of Issue:  January 31, 2024
First Day City:  New York, New York
Quantity Issued:  35,000,000
Printed by:  Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd.
Printing Method:  Offset, Microprint
Format:  Panes of 20
Tagging:  Nonphosphored Type III, Block Tag Applied

Why the stamp was issued:  This stamp was issued to honor well-known Black politician, civil rights activist, and judge Constance Baker Motley. These roles and the fact that she was the first Black woman to argue a case before the US Supreme Court make her a fitting addition to the long-running Black Heritage Sries of stamps.

About the stamp design:  Pictures a portrait of Motley based on an Associated Press photograph. Includes stenciled circular shapes around her head to suggest royalty, heavy brushstrokes and scratches to add texture to the acrylic painting. Also has stenciled curlicues on the lower background. Original artwork by Charly Palmer.

First Day City:  The First Day of Issue Ceremony was held in New York City at the Constance Baker Motley Recreation Center.

About the Black Heritage Series:  The Black Heritage Series began on February 1, 1978, with the issue of the 13¢ Harriet Tubman stamp (US #1744). Since then, the USPS has issued a new stamp in the series every year. A number of them have even been released in February in recognition of Black History month. As of 2024, it was the USPS’s longest-running stamp series of all time.

History the stamp represents:  Constance Baker Motley (September 14, 1921 – September 28, 2005) was a politician, civil rights activist, and judge. She was also the first Black woman to argue a case before the Supreme Court.

Constance Baker was born to Caribbean immigrants from nevis and was the ninth of twelve children. By age 15, Constance had read books by James Weldon Johnson and W.E.B. DuBois, giving her an early interest in Black history and civil rights. She also learned how few black lawyers there were at the time.

When Motley graduated high school, she had already decided she wanted to practice law, but had no money for college. She began working for the National Youth Administration instead. While there, she met philanthropist Clarence W. Blakeslee, who offered to pay for her education. She attended Columbia Law School, graduated in 1946, and was hired by the NAACP as a civil rights lawyer soon after.

Throughout her career, Motley represented Martin Luther King Jr., the Freedom Riders, Birmingham Children Marchers, and more. She was also involved in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case. In the end, of the 10 cases Motley argued before the Supreme Court, nine were victories and the tenth was later overturned in her favor. Her work was invaluable to improving the lives of Black Americans everywhere.