2023 Toni Morrison Forever First Class Postage Stamps

Toni Morrison, the acclaimed author who became the first African American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, will be memorialized on a Forever stamp, which was unveiled Tuesday by the United States Postal Service.

The portrait featured on the stamp ¡ª with Ms. Morrison smiling, looking straight into the camera, against a yellow backdrop ¡ª was part of a 1997 photo shoot by Deborah Feingold for the cover of Time magazine.

The United States Postal Service made the announcement at a ceremony at Princeton University, where Ms. Morrison taught from 1989 to 2006. The event was part of a series throughout the 2022-23 academic year dedicated to Ms. Morrison¡¯s work, including lectures and an exhibit of her writing, said Gene Jarrett, dean of faculty at Princeton.

In a letter read at the unveiling, former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, the former first lady, said Ms. Morrison¡¯s writing challenges readers¡¯ consciences and brings out their empathy.