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AlameenPost welcomes Canada Post Eid Stamp
5-31-2017
On May 23rd Canada Post today issued an Eid stamp that recognizes Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, two of the most important festivals celebrated by Muslims in Canada and worldwide.
The stamps were unveiled at events with members of the Muslim communities in Montréal, Que. and Richmond Hill, Ont. Montréal and the Greater Toronto Area are home to more than half of Canada’s over 1 million Muslims.
The Arabic script on the stamp reads “Eid Mubarak,” which translates to “Have a happy Eid” or “Have a blessed Eid.” It appears under a pointed arch, which symbolizes the division between sacred and worldly space in Muslim culture. The stamp’s deep blues and warm gold and yellows, as well as its geometric pattern, are seen in Islamic architecture. The new moon atop the stamp signifies the start of Eid.
Designed by Doreen Colonello and Erin Enns of Entro Communications and printed by Colour Innovations, this Permanent domestic-rate stamp measures 28 mm by 35 mm, is printed in six colours plus a varnish, and is available in booklets of 10.
Reaction to the stamp has been swift and positive. Within 12 hours, there had been over seven thousand views of the Montreal launch on social media. "Very good example of coexistance and cultural diversity. SO PROUD OF ALL CANADIANS"; "You gotta love Canada's diversity"; "I'm proud to be Canadian!", reads a sampling of the comments.
Canada Post first issued Eid, Diwali and Hanukkah stamps in 2011, however, available only through online purchases. Canada Post Press Release, dated November 1, 2012 states, "And following last year’s successful introduction, stamps celebrating three annual religious festivals (Diwali, Eid and Hanukkah) are again available for purchase online. These stamps reflect Canada’s diverse and multicultural society and celebrate annual religious festivals observed by several hundreds of thousands of Canadians."
Just last year AlameenPost advocated to have the stamps be made available to Public.
Our Statement read as follows:
“Canada Post must make an effort to make such unique and novel service which could generate hundreds and thousands of dollars for the postal services only if they were more easily accessible and made available to the public, at least, during the holiday season.
We also feel that this unique service needs to be better promoted with fanfare such as the one by US Postal Services, the public can get acquainted with such services, and developing better understanding of the faith and its celebrations, whether it be an Eid, Diwali, or Hanukkah.”
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