Ruben Salazar (1928-1970) is one of five American journalists being honored with postage stamps. According to the US Postal Service, these journalists were chosen because they risked (and in Salazar’s case, lost) their lives covering some of the most important events in the 20th century.

Los Angeles bloggers at LA Eastside and Intersections have discussed Salazar’s important legacy as both a journalist and in the Chicano Movement.

The LA Times have a wealth of coverage on Salazar, including some of the ground-breaking columns he penned in the 1960s. From Ed Fuentes’ View From A Loft:

On August 29, 1970, at age 42, the Los Angeles Times and KMEX [a Spanish-language television station] reporter was shot in the head and killed by a tear gas canister fired by a deputy sheriff during the Chicano Moratorium March protesting the Vietnam War. Outside the Silver Dollar Cafe, where Salazar was struck, was Cal State Northridge Professor Raul Ruiz and his camera.

At the time of his murder, Salazar was called a “militant” by Time Magazine. Now, he’s honored by activists and journalists alike.