Correos
- The Spanish postal service's anti-racism campaign drew backlash this week.
- "Equality Stamps" were released in four skin tones – and the lighter the color, the more it cost.
- Correos said its pricing was made to encourage people to use darker stamps more.
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Spain's postal service attempted to take a stand against racism this week – by creating skin-tone stamps that were more valuable if they were lighter.
The "Equality Stamps" feature four skin-tone stamps were released on Tuesday, the anniversary of George Floyd's death.
But the four stamps dropped in value the darker they become, with the whitest worth 1.60 euros ($1.95) and the darkest worth just 70 cent ($0.85).
Correos, the state-owned postal company, said its pricing model was made to encourage people to use the darker stamps more.
"The darker the stamp, the less value it will have, therefore, when making a shipment, it will be necessary to use more black stamps than white ones," it said in a news release announcing the initiative.
"In this way, each letter and each shipment will become a reflection of the inequality created by racism."
The stamps, which are available on the postal service's website, were immediately criticized as tone-deaf, according to The Washington Post.
The Spanish anti-racism group SOS Racismo Madrid said the "unfortunate" stamp campaign would reinforce stereotypes about Black inferiority and "highlights the need to create greater anti-racist awareness in Spain."
