USA STAMPS
1943

Scott 908
FOUR FREEDOMS ISSUE

Issued 12th Feb 1943 on unwatermarked paper, printed rotary press and perf 11:10½. Designed by Paul Manship. The stamp features Liberty holding the Torch of Freedom and Enlightenment. There were also First Day Covers to commemorate the anniversary.

The Four Freedoms were goals articulated by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt on Monday, 6th Jan 1941. In an address known as the Four Freedoms speech (technically the 1941 State of the Union address), he proposed four fundamental freedoms that people "everywhere in the world" ought to enjoy:

Freedom of speech
Freedom of worship
Freedom from want
Freedom from fear

Roosevelt delivered his speech 11 months before the surprise Japanese attack on U.S. forces in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii that caused the United States to declare war on Japan, 8th Dec 1941.