Kahlil Gibran’s ‘The Prophet’ Opened 100 Million Hearts; It’s Time to Put Him on a Stamp

posted on: Aug 16, 2012

Bugs Bunny has a commemorative U.S. Postal Service stamp. Wonder Woman has a stamp. Dennis the Menace, Archie, Garfield the cat—they all have commemorative U.S. Postal Service stamps.

Do you know who does not have a stamp? World-renowned literary lion Kahlil Gibran, a Lebanese-born American immigrant who wrote much of his vastly influential and inspirational body of work while living in the U.S.

Devoted individuals have been petitioning the U.S. for decades to create a commemorative stamp of Kahlil Gibran. Despite efforts from the Arab-American and Lebanese-American communities, the request has never gone beyond the consideration stage of the U.S. Postal Service, which awards only about 20 commemorative stamps each year.

The American Committee for Kahlil Gibran Stamp is spearheading a renewed campaign to spur action from the Postal Service, urging interested individuals to sign a petition calling for a Gibran stamp on this site. The Postal Service chooses the lucky winners three years in advance; so the campaign’s goal is to get the author’s stamp out in 2015.

Lebanese-born Gibran, who died in 1931, immigrated to the U.S. as a pre-teen and achieved literary immortality with his best-selling inspirational fiction The Prophet.

The Prophet consisted of 26 prose poetry essays written in English and established Gibran’s lasting reputation as a poet-philosopher. He primarily wrote about life, love, death and homeland.

“For Arab Americans and Arabs daunted by political, financial and social uncertainty, Gibran holds a valuable place as the immigrant voice in America,” says a statement from the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) in support of the Kahlil Gibran U.S. postage stamp initiative.

The Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee of the U.S. Postal Service, which convenes at the behest of the Postmaster General to recommend commemorative stamps, receives about 40,000 subject requests a year.

More than 1,275 folks have signed the Gibran petition in the past few days, according to the Khalil Gibran Appreciation Initiative’s Facebook page. The goal is to reach 150,000 signatures.

“I first read The Prophet in high school,” wrote one user. “It made poetry so much more interesting to me.”

Since its original publication in 1923, the collection has sold more than 100 million copies and been translated into more than 40 languages.

Participant Media, TakePart’s parent company, is teaming up with actress Salma Hayek and the Doha Film Institute to produce Gibran’s masterwork as an animated feature. Different award-winning filmmakers will each direct a chapter from The Prophet, with Academy Award-nominated director Roger Allers helming the entire project.

“The Prophet has been an incredible source of wisdom and inspiration for millions of people all over the world,” said Hayek. “Being of Lebanese descent, I’m particularly proud to be part of a project that will present this masterpiece to new generations, in a way never seen before.”

Interested in the postage stamp campaign? Check it out <a href=”https://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/50434//p/dia/action/public/index.sjs?action_KEY=8123″>here</a> and sign the petition.

Kelly Zhou
Take Part