TORONTO — Buffy Sainte-Marie has found a spot where she belongs — on a commemorative stamp honouring her influence.
Canada Post says it will celebrate the Indigenous singer-songwriter with a new stamp design set to be revealed Thursday at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa.
The five-time Juno winner has spent more than half a century balancing her music interests with advocacy for Indigenous communities.
She penned the 1964 antiwar peace anthem "Universal Soldier" and 1976 song "Starwalker," an ode to the American Indian Movement.
In 1982, Sainte-Marie became the first Indigenous person to win an Oscar as co-writer of "Up Where We Belong" for "An Officer and a Gentleman."
By then, she'd already spent years advocating for better awareness of Indigenous cultures, starting with the formation of her non-profit organization the Nihewan Foundation for Native American Education in 1969.
Canada Post says Sainte-Marie is expected to attend the unveiling on Thursday alongside Perry Bellegarde, former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2021.
David Friend, The Canadian Press
