You forgot to mention the most memorable legacy of Ivy Baker Priest (except for that very sage and pithy quote.) She was the mother of Pat Priest, aka Marilyn Munster of The Munsters.
4
Mae West!
3
Harriet Tubman was the only woman to ever lead US troops into combat.
She belongs on the $20.
http://www.history.com/news/harriet-tubmans-daring-raid-150-years-ago
She belongs on the $20.
http://www.history.com/news/harriet-tubmans-daring-raid-150-years-ago
8
I have never looked at a picture on any currency except when it was a high school question and do not care whose picture is on any of it. If it is a woman, I would not notice and I wonder how many people actually look at the picture of even care about it. In the world of opinion, I guess I don't think this is important but I sincerely respect the opinions of others in this issue. Hoping that everyone is satisfied with their particular issues, good luck to all that want a woman on their currency.
2
It's interesting to think how this fits in with the American refusal to accept the one dollar coin, which, from the ones minted from 1979 on, had women on the face side. Apparently, the only ones to ever accept use of these coins were transit systems and the USPS, leaving the Treasury with huge unused surpluses of them, so production has been sporadic. Printing paper money, which wears out, is significantly more costly than minting coins, which last a long time. Plus they work better in vending and slot machines. Pretty much everywhere else on the planet, countries such as the UK, Canada, and those in the Eurozone, use coins for the smaller denominations akin to our $1 and $2 bills. The method used by these countries for introducing dollar equivalent coins (and saving the taxpayers considerable money) was to simply phase out the low denomination bills over time. In the US, there does not appear to be a political will by our government to take such a radical stand. After all, individual freedom in the US (often to resist unpopular but necessary changes) is paramount over common sense.
12
Being that the portraits on our currency are almost as important as the pictures on our stamps, we should do like the post office and change them regularly.
5
Sounds good to me, Gail. Gawd, I forgot all about IB Priest. As a kid, I wondered who that person was signing our bills. Actually, I think it was my grandfather who told me about it. Right, my grandfather. Anyway, I wondered why the Catholic Church was messing with our money until I learned who she was.
Well, if changing the picture requires an actual decision from someone in government, good luck. So you are saying that there is the Anticounterfit Office that probably meets only on St. Swithuns day. Looks like Andy will be on that bill for a while, commemorating our racially harmonious past, as opposed to our racially harmonious present.
I have a great idea. Look, we sell anything in this society. For example, the Meadowlands Sports complex has been tagged with many names. And you're telling us that the Brits have no problem swapping faces on their quid. So why not sell the portrait rights to the highest bidder?
There could be yearly portrait changes... and to broaden the market, as we always do, people of lesser means could buy a week. In fact, currency could be fully customizable. We could have Trumps and Kochs, but also Mitt Romney's dog.
It's a great idea. If you use it, Gail, just email me hard currency only. And if you send a bill with Harriet Tubman's face on it, I'll know it's fake because St. Swithuns Day is July 15 and that committe hasn't met yet.
Well, if changing the picture requires an actual decision from someone in government, good luck. So you are saying that there is the Anticounterfit Office that probably meets only on St. Swithuns day. Looks like Andy will be on that bill for a while, commemorating our racially harmonious past, as opposed to our racially harmonious present.
I have a great idea. Look, we sell anything in this society. For example, the Meadowlands Sports complex has been tagged with many names. And you're telling us that the Brits have no problem swapping faces on their quid. So why not sell the portrait rights to the highest bidder?
There could be yearly portrait changes... and to broaden the market, as we always do, people of lesser means could buy a week. In fact, currency could be fully customizable. We could have Trumps and Kochs, but also Mitt Romney's dog.
It's a great idea. If you use it, Gail, just email me hard currency only. And if you send a bill with Harriet Tubman's face on it, I'll know it's fake because St. Swithuns Day is July 15 and that committe hasn't met yet.
3
Women are held back in so many, many ways in the world. Not having a female face on our currency may seem petty to some - but the fact even the suggestion is causing such an uproar is symptomatic of the rampant misogyny - and racism - infecting us as a society.
PS. I remember Ivy Baker Priest, too, so don't be discouraged.
PS. I remember Ivy Baker Priest, too, so don't be discouraged.
11
Just a personal opinion but I think we should stick to Presidents (Ben is a special case, kinda honorary prez emeritus) and use it as motivation so the office can mean something more than the honey pot it is at present.
And yes, we need some diversity so I propose Obama. Hillary will have to wait.
And yes, we need some diversity so I propose Obama. Hillary will have to wait.
3
I'd like to see a group of new people on all the bills and rotate them - so that we have a group of five - ten folks that are on each bill - there are so many terrific, important, inspiring people who we could honor in this way. Every few years we could reevaluate and add or subtract folks - in that way we honor many more people and it's much more representative of the country we live in. two qualities to start - dead and american - then go from there
- i'd propose MLK, Dorthy Day, Caesar Chavez, Harvey Milk, Harry Hay, Rosa Parks, Sitting Bull, Malcolm X, Thurgood Marshall and walt whitman, off the top of my head - each one would be great on a bill - each a great, important person - there are so many people - let's mix it up and change the bills - enough of these long dead white military and political figures -
- i'd propose MLK, Dorthy Day, Caesar Chavez, Harvey Milk, Harry Hay, Rosa Parks, Sitting Bull, Malcolm X, Thurgood Marshall and walt whitman, off the top of my head - each one would be great on a bill - each a great, important person - there are so many people - let's mix it up and change the bills - enough of these long dead white military and political figures -
6
"Sure, the United States is a global currency. We should regard change as a serious matter. However, not an epic challenge of herculean proportions." Hey, hold on here: I work in a part of the world which is "dollarized", meaning that, although there is a local currency, most transactions are done in dollars, if only because the largest bill in the local currency is worth 5 U.S. dollars. And, whereas we were all taught that that our $20 bills are good forever, that message has never gotten through out here, where people simply will not believe that once new bills are issued, the old ones are still good. Even though Treasury makes a big effort to convince people of the contrary, once the new bills come out, the old ones become worthless. or are sold off to smart operators at a huge discount-- nobody will take them, not even bankers and others who know better, because they'll never be able to pass them on to the next person. Billions of dollars of people's savings or business receipts suddenly become worthless, or nearly so, which would seem pretty "Herculean" to me. (Remember the old bills with the small pictures of Hamilton or whoever? Try using one of them to buy a cup of coffee out here -- you'd be lucky not to be arrested.) So the needs of these users (whose use of dollars is a huge money-earner for the U.S., one of the attributes of being the -- not a -- world currency) need to be taken into account, not brushed so easily aside.
2
I say we all get some white out , have some Harriet Tubman stamps made up and get to work !
1
Gail Collins strikes again.
As long as we have Gail Collins, we can still go on without David Letterman.
As long as we have Gail Collins, we can still go on without David Letterman.
12
Call me a stuffy old-fashioned coin and money collector (guilty as charged), but I think we should take ALL real people -- male or female -- off our money.
Most people don't realize it, but the first time any real person ever got put on a non-commemorative coin was Lincoln in 1909 on the cent… and he's still there! Now all our coins without exception are dead presidents.
Before this the "people" on our coinage were abstract versions of "Liberty" (always a woman, by the way).
Even the guy on the Buffalo nickel is an amalgamation of three Native Americans, and the version of Liberty on the Peace Dollar (my personal favorite coin) was the sculptor's own wife! The Morgan silver dollar was Liberty, modeled on a school teacher acquaintance of George Morgan's.
Paper money is a bit different: Lincoln was actually on several denominations of it while he was in office!
And don't get me started on commemorative coins. There have been actual live people on them while still living (including Senator Carter Glass of Virginia in the 1930s, Eunice Kennedy-Shriver in 1996, and Nancy Reagan next year(!) on the $5 first spouse gold bullion coin for President Reagan.
Let's put Lady Liberty back on all our money. There are endless artistic ways to model her.
Most people don't realize it, but the first time any real person ever got put on a non-commemorative coin was Lincoln in 1909 on the cent… and he's still there! Now all our coins without exception are dead presidents.
Before this the "people" on our coinage were abstract versions of "Liberty" (always a woman, by the way).
Even the guy on the Buffalo nickel is an amalgamation of three Native Americans, and the version of Liberty on the Peace Dollar (my personal favorite coin) was the sculptor's own wife! The Morgan silver dollar was Liberty, modeled on a school teacher acquaintance of George Morgan's.
Paper money is a bit different: Lincoln was actually on several denominations of it while he was in office!
And don't get me started on commemorative coins. There have been actual live people on them while still living (including Senator Carter Glass of Virginia in the 1930s, Eunice Kennedy-Shriver in 1996, and Nancy Reagan next year(!) on the $5 first spouse gold bullion coin for President Reagan.
Let's put Lady Liberty back on all our money. There are endless artistic ways to model her.
36
Changing a bill sounds like an expensive and slow process. What we really need is a larger , $500 or $1000 bill. Let's solve both problems and put a woman on the 1000!
1
I remember Ivy Baker Priest because it's such a cool name. We do need to get Andrew (Big Cheese) Jackson off of the twenty. Ms. Tubman represents one of the best things our culture ever produced. Go Harriet!
7
20 bucks doesn't go far anymore. My vote would be for Little LuLu
2
Regarding differentiating between $ denominations. Since US currency is "engraved" and if you line up the different denominations on the back side you will see (and if you are sight challenged, you will feel) the the words The United States of America are in a different font and layout on each denomination already. So why the need for an additional "tactile" feature.
2
The better choice for the woman on the $20 is Eleanor Roosevelt -- the First Lady who redefined the role by tirelessly traveling around the country and the world including war zones while acting as the eyes and ears and, at times, the conscience of President Roosevelt. The first lady who championed the poor and the black population via her speeches and newspaper column. The first lady who resigned her membership in the DAR when they refused to allow Marion Anderson to sing in their hall in DC. The first US Ambassador to the UN and the author of the Bill of Human Rights who forced the issue until all of the UN member nations adopted it.
She was and is an outstanding American who despite having been born into one of America's "golden families" -- the Roosevelts -- dealt with the unhappiness of a mother who didn't love her and who died when Eleanor was a small girl and who lost her father to alcoholism at the age of ten and from that point on was dependent on family members for a home but who lived her childhood and teenage years without benefit of love and who then married a "golden boy" -- FDR, bore him six children only to realize that he was unfaithful to her. Despite that she stuck with the marriage -- only to realize in 1945 after he died, that he'd still been seeing Mrs. Rutherford over the years. ER represented the "new woman" who despite not having a college education made herself into an important figure who fought endlessly for the rights of the "have nots."
She was and is an outstanding American who despite having been born into one of America's "golden families" -- the Roosevelts -- dealt with the unhappiness of a mother who didn't love her and who died when Eleanor was a small girl and who lost her father to alcoholism at the age of ten and from that point on was dependent on family members for a home but who lived her childhood and teenage years without benefit of love and who then married a "golden boy" -- FDR, bore him six children only to realize that he was unfaithful to her. Despite that she stuck with the marriage -- only to realize in 1945 after he died, that he'd still been seeing Mrs. Rutherford over the years. ER represented the "new woman" who despite not having a college education made herself into an important figure who fought endlessly for the rights of the "have nots."
17
Ms. Collins may just have been trying to be funny about Andrew Jackson's accomplishments but it is an unfair sleight.
It's doubtful we would have won the War of 1812 without his activities in the west and though it's commonly thought the Battle of New Orleans was after the war was over in fact no treaty had yet been signed and if he had lost the British could have backed out of the agreement.
And if he hadn't stood up to John C. Calhoun and his fellow pro-nullifiers the country might have descended into civil war in the 1830s and if Pierce and Buchanan had had Jackson's fortitude we might have avoided the war altogether.
Finally, Jackson was the first president to show that a boy from a poverty stricken background could become president.
That's all a lot more than his just loving his wife.
It's doubtful we would have won the War of 1812 without his activities in the west and though it's commonly thought the Battle of New Orleans was after the war was over in fact no treaty had yet been signed and if he had lost the British could have backed out of the agreement.
And if he hadn't stood up to John C. Calhoun and his fellow pro-nullifiers the country might have descended into civil war in the 1830s and if Pierce and Buchanan had had Jackson's fortitude we might have avoided the war altogether.
Finally, Jackson was the first president to show that a boy from a poverty stricken background could become president.
That's all a lot more than his just loving his wife.
6
Jackson was also a slave owner and responsible for the Trail of Tears that displaced American Indians from their Oklahoma lands to give to his cronies. Not exactly a symbol we should encourage to represent our country, except if you want to honor our current mis-state of the union.
5
We have had women on coins. Susan B. Anthony and Sacajawea made brief stints. I believe at one time Helen Keller also made an appearance. Hey it's the same story for those women. It does not matter how resilient you are, men will complain and phase you out.
8
Eleanor Roosevelt - no brainer.
10
Why just one women? How about Tubman on the Fifty (who can argue that Grant really belongs on any of our currency) and Eleanor Roosevelt on the
Twenty? For many reasons and rationalization, seems reasonable. let's at least give a thought.
Twenty? For many reasons and rationalization, seems reasonable. let's at least give a thought.
11
Tubman for Jackson is a good deal. We could make that an occasion for even wider celebration with a campaign to get her story out through mass media. A lot of people know the story of Harriet Tubman; a lot of people don't. Let's do something about that, and let's get some change for our twenty.
35
Something is seriously wrong with us. Why does every issue get complicated, convoluted, confused? Since we make every situation a complex problem and then keep on adding addendum after addendum ( like blind-friendly ) the solutions keep on getting further and further away. England changes it's currency,France does it, Germany does it smoothly and without wrinkles. Why is putting a portrait of an accomplished women ( and there are so many ) be Mission Impossible? The answer is straightforward - the portrait can only be of a Man!!
2
I've always thought the difference between Europe and America was in Europe they have interesting money and boring license plates. In America boring money and interesting license plates.
3
I want women on some of our currency.
That said, your comments on Andrew Jackson, while all true, are still a caricature of what his career meant in the history of the United States.
Maybe we could have two people on the twenty, one on each side. Harriet Tubman on one side and Andrew Jackson on the other. Of course, if we are considering black women, why not think about Sojourner Truth, as well as Harriet Tubman. A case for each can be made. The discussion could be illuminating.
I would suggest Frederick Douglass for one side of another two sided prominent people on a bill. Douglass doesn't help with the gender issue. Nevertheless, he is one of the greatest Americans of the 19th century.
That said, your comments on Andrew Jackson, while all true, are still a caricature of what his career meant in the history of the United States.
Maybe we could have two people on the twenty, one on each side. Harriet Tubman on one side and Andrew Jackson on the other. Of course, if we are considering black women, why not think about Sojourner Truth, as well as Harriet Tubman. A case for each can be made. The discussion could be illuminating.
I would suggest Frederick Douglass for one side of another two sided prominent people on a bill. Douglass doesn't help with the gender issue. Nevertheless, he is one of the greatest Americans of the 19th century.
1
Tubman and Jackson on the same bill? What a contradiction that would be, and I'm not thinking of the gender, but of their attitudes regarding oppressed people: Tubman helped people gain freedom, Jackson helped slavery and oppression of them.
1
Symbols are lovely, but in the meantime GOP legislatures all over the country are trying to push women, via denial of reproductive rights, back into the 19th century.
6
The US is pretty stodgy when it comes to currency. BORING. Other countries seem to treat their monetary instruments as a source of entertainment.
Australia's biils, like all things Aussie, are big mobs of fun. The EU, consisting of countries that have been invading and killing each other for centuries, managed to design the Euro.
Australia's biils, like all things Aussie, are big mobs of fun. The EU, consisting of countries that have been invading and killing each other for centuries, managed to design the Euro.
2
Did you know that Ivy Baker Priest's daughter Pat was the actress who played Marilyn on "The Munsters"?
3
It is time for women to grace our money, however in keeping with the disparity of pay between men and women, I propose the following denominations:
$.77 Bill
$3.85 Bill
$7.70 Bill
$15.40 Bill
$.77 Bill
$3.85 Bill
$7.70 Bill
$15.40 Bill
10
Bruce Jenner!
1
I'd like to see Tubman or Eleanor Roosevelt or even a hispanic woman on the $20. In some states hispanics make up almost half the population, and most are U.S. born. Why not Dolores Huerta? Huerta, the "dragon lady" used her education to articulate, negotiate, and organize the UFWA strike. It resulted in an economic upheaval that changed agribusiness and set a new bar for treatment of farm workers. Cesar Chavez gets all the credit, but the movement would have failed without co-founder Huerta.
3
Actually, we've had women's portraits on American currency: Susan B. Anthony and, later, Sacagawea. These dollar coins are still legal tender and should be issued in greater quantities to replace the paper dollar (George Washington was a slave owner too). Coins last a lot longer than paper money and would save the U.S. mint a lot of money. And George W. and all the other presidents are having coins issued for each of them, too, though more as collector's items.
Gee -- maybe counterfeiters aren't as interested in counterfeiting $1 and $5 bills so they are not as much of a concern!
With the Indian Removal Act of 1830, the U.S. Congress had given Jackson authority to negotiate removal treaties, exchanging Indian land in the East for land west of the Mississippi. Jackson used the dispute with Georgia to put pressure on the Cherokees to sign a removal treaty.[37]
The treaty, passed by Congress by a single vote, allowed Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Alabama to round up about 13,000 Cherokees into concentration camps in Tennessee before being sent to the West. Most of the deaths occurred from disease, starvation and cold in these camps. Their homes were burned and their property destroyed and plundered. Farms belonging to the Cherokees for generations were won by white settlers in a lottery. After the initial roundup, the U.S. military still oversaw the emigration until they met the forced destination.[38] Private John G. Burnett later wrote, "Future generations will read and condemn the act and I do hope posterity will remember that private soldiers like myself, and like the four Cherokees who were forced by General Scott to shoot an Indian Chief and his children, had to execute the orders of our superiors. We had no choice in the matter."[39]
Portrait of Marcia Pascal, a young Cherokee woman. (1880)
I fought through the War Between the States and have seen many men shot, but the Cherokee Removal was the cruelest work I ever knew.
—Georgia soldier who participated in the removal[40]
The treaty, passed by Congress by a single vote, allowed Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Alabama to round up about 13,000 Cherokees into concentration camps in Tennessee before being sent to the West. Most of the deaths occurred from disease, starvation and cold in these camps. Their homes were burned and their property destroyed and plundered. Farms belonging to the Cherokees for generations were won by white settlers in a lottery. After the initial roundup, the U.S. military still oversaw the emigration until they met the forced destination.[38] Private John G. Burnett later wrote, "Future generations will read and condemn the act and I do hope posterity will remember that private soldiers like myself, and like the four Cherokees who were forced by General Scott to shoot an Indian Chief and his children, had to execute the orders of our superiors. We had no choice in the matter."[39]
Portrait of Marcia Pascal, a young Cherokee woman. (1880)
I fought through the War Between the States and have seen many men shot, but the Cherokee Removal was the cruelest work I ever knew.
—Georgia soldier who participated in the removal[40]
6
I like the idea of Tom Brady's portrait on the $20 dollar bill. It takes the subject of inflation in a completely different direction. Clever kid.
7
Ivy Baker Priest appeared on What's My Line some sixty years ago. Although she used an alias the panelists did not have to put on masks. The point was that everybody was expected to recognize her name but not her face.
2
Give Credit Where Credit Is Due!
Tubman, fine! But if the $20 takes so long to approve, how about a "$MW" or "Minimum Wage" bill in the meantime?
The denomination can be fixed to the average rate of return on capital or, better yet, the average increase in CEO salaries. Whose picture should go on it? We the people, the workers who fund the state credit. A different working person every day the bill is issued.
And while we're at it, let's get rid of the spooky pyramid with the panoptic eye. Is that the "god of pyramid schemes" in whom we are all supposed to trust?
Tubman, fine! But if the $20 takes so long to approve, how about a "$MW" or "Minimum Wage" bill in the meantime?
The denomination can be fixed to the average rate of return on capital or, better yet, the average increase in CEO salaries. Whose picture should go on it? We the people, the workers who fund the state credit. A different working person every day the bill is issued.
And while we're at it, let's get rid of the spooky pyramid with the panoptic eye. Is that the "god of pyramid schemes" in whom we are all supposed to trust?
1
We want a portrait on a bill, one of a person who embodies equality, freedom, courage, and more.
And yet, unless the money itself is used to promote those values, the portrait isn't worth the paper it's printed on.
And yet, unless the money itself is used to promote those values, the portrait isn't worth the paper it's printed on.
2
There is now an app that allows blind people to identify the different denominations of bills. The government's effort with the $10 bill seems a bit antiquated.
It would be exciting if the government would announce it's GETTING STARTED on a committed process to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill.
It would be exciting if the government would announce it's GETTING STARTED on a committed process to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill.
1
Symbols are important, and this is a reason to replace Andrew Jackson, who illegally defied a ruling by the Supreme Court, with Harriet Tubman, who emancipated herself from enslavement.
Language is just as important for the implicit messages it conveys. Do we think of Jackson, Washington, Jefferson and others as slave-owners, or as slave-holders? Was Tubman a slave, or a woman who was enslaved? "Slave-owner" implies the legitimacy of slavery, that one person can own another. "Slave-holder" suggests that although one person may illegitimately and unjustly control another, there is no right of ownership.
Lest this appear to be historical nit-picking, consider the situation of thousands of people today. In an age when human trafficking and sex slavery plague the world, our language should reinforce the human rights of vulnerable people, not legitimize kidnapping and abuse by the powerful.
Language is just as important for the implicit messages it conveys. Do we think of Jackson, Washington, Jefferson and others as slave-owners, or as slave-holders? Was Tubman a slave, or a woman who was enslaved? "Slave-owner" implies the legitimacy of slavery, that one person can own another. "Slave-holder" suggests that although one person may illegitimately and unjustly control another, there is no right of ownership.
Lest this appear to be historical nit-picking, consider the situation of thousands of people today. In an age when human trafficking and sex slavery plague the world, our language should reinforce the human rights of vulnerable people, not legitimize kidnapping and abuse by the powerful.
3
Totally agree with you. Jackson was party to the oppression of two major population segments of our "united" country.
1
Andrew Jackson was a great president and deserves to be on the $20.00 bill.
Politicizing currency is a terrible idea. Run the scenario out to its logical conclusion. Do you really want to spend billions to change paper money every time the White House turns over to the other party?
Politicizing currency is a terrible idea. Run the scenario out to its logical conclusion. Do you really want to spend billions to change paper money every time the White House turns over to the other party?
There's nothing political about the fact that women deserve some representation too...if we're only putting people on our currency.
1
Why does a paper currency have to have a picture of ANYONE on it? Wouldn't it make a lot more sense to put the denomination amount in the middle of it, sufficiently ornate enough to satisfy the engravers and anti-counterfeiters? Tactile feedback for sight-impaired folks would be great, and possibly digital encoding to interact with automated counters and next gen cash registers would be nice.
But if the demand is for human images is still overwhelming, is it more practical to replace those images and keep the denominations or create new denominations? Wouldn't a $25 bill be a practical thing?
Unmentioned in Ms. Collins' column was the hue and cry from the far right, how the existing portraits adorning our cash were ordained in some etched-in-stone way, part of their rights of freedom, liberty, God and firearms. We can hear they say, faintly, but growing in volume, that next it will be a gay couple and the end of civilization as we know it.
I would proudly want a $20 with Tubman' portrait on it as I surrendered it to the kid at the movie concession stand who tucked it away in the till in exchange for a box of stale popcorn and a corn syrup sweetened soda, or a beer at a pro football game. What could be more American than that?
But if the demand is for human images is still overwhelming, is it more practical to replace those images and keep the denominations or create new denominations? Wouldn't a $25 bill be a practical thing?
Unmentioned in Ms. Collins' column was the hue and cry from the far right, how the existing portraits adorning our cash were ordained in some etched-in-stone way, part of their rights of freedom, liberty, God and firearms. We can hear they say, faintly, but growing in volume, that next it will be a gay couple and the end of civilization as we know it.
I would proudly want a $20 with Tubman' portrait on it as I surrendered it to the kid at the movie concession stand who tucked it away in the till in exchange for a box of stale popcorn and a corn syrup sweetened soda, or a beer at a pro football game. What could be more American than that?
3
Jackson was a great and transformative president, despite his flaws. I have no problem replacing him, but he should be replaced by someone or something that is representative of the best of American ideals. While Tubman was inspiring, she represents a shameful part of our history, not our greatness.
2
I have to respond. Tubman "represents a shameful part of our history, not our greatness?" So, because her fight for freedom was aimed against slavery, she "represents" to you the institution she *reminds* you of -- slavery. This is one example of the extended meaning of "white privilege" -- we get to not be reminded of slavery, ever, even when looking at dollar bills and coins with slave owners on them. Meanwhile, blacks are reminded of the reality of slavery, let's say, unavoidably.
Consider applying the same logic to the currency presidents who fought for freedom and against colonization. Do they represent a shameful part of our history -- colonization -- as well?
Tubman *reminds* you of the institution she fought against, so you want to ostracize her memory; Jefferson and Washington don't *remind* you of the same institution they upheld, so you presumably slap them on the back. Am I getting this right?
Consider applying the same logic to the currency presidents who fought for freedom and against colonization. Do they represent a shameful part of our history -- colonization -- as well?
Tubman *reminds* you of the institution she fought against, so you want to ostracize her memory; Jefferson and Washington don't *remind* you of the same institution they upheld, so you presumably slap them on the back. Am I getting this right?
2
Save the angst and not have any individual portrait. Easy.
1
It's hard to change a culture by changing the face of money. I would be for Tubman over Jackson in a hot minute, though. WE need more examples of goodness if we want our country to consist of good people in the future.
Righg now, we have an identity crisis in America: we think we are exceptional.
Righg now, we have an identity crisis in America: we think we are exceptional.
2
Thank you, Ms. Collins for your tribute to Ivy Baker Priest! Assuming your quotation from her is accurate, she was a woman who knew what was more important: women getting their hands--not their heads--on currency.
And thank you for pointing out how much faster the UK can change their currency. Guess UK counterfeiters are just not as tricky as those targeting US money. Or perhaps it is the US need to re-invent the wheel every time we want to go for a drive. It does seem most officials in the US do want to turn every change into an "epic challenge"-- which explains so much about recent US history.
Great column, Ms. Collins.
And thank you for pointing out how much faster the UK can change their currency. Guess UK counterfeiters are just not as tricky as those targeting US money. Or perhaps it is the US need to re-invent the wheel every time we want to go for a drive. It does seem most officials in the US do want to turn every change into an "epic challenge"-- which explains so much about recent US history.
Great column, Ms. Collins.
3
American currency has always been the most popular for counterfeiting. In the late 90's, early 2000's, Korean counterfeiters were copying large quantities of the $100 bill. That brought on the new coloring and faint patterns that were added to the formerly very green bills, and made it easier to detect counterfeits.
I suggest the Native American chief, Running Antelope, whose portrait was on the beautiful 1899 U.S. $5 bill. Solves the issue of Jackson's war on the Indians.
Why not a $ .78 female note reflecting their wage value compared to men? Imagine the fun of calculating beyond one!
And maybe that would be incentive enough to bring it up to a nice round number, say $1.00.
And maybe that would be incentive enough to bring it up to a nice round number, say $1.00.
4
As a numismatist, I indeed remember Ivy Baker Priest.
And this notion that no woman has been depicted on our coins and currency is a totally bogus claim and an easily refuted bit of fiction. For one, we struck a commemorative half-dollar for the 1892 Columbian Exposition featuring Queen Isabella.
But far more importantly, for the first 150+ years of this nation's history, the obverse of most of our coins featured a woman, Lady Liberty in various forms, beginning with a freed slave woman and progressing to the Statue of Liberty on the 1921-1933 silver dollar.
I am not averse to redesigning our coins and currency, but I favor taking personages from our past entirely off all of them in favor of what our money used to depict, representations of our ideals of liberty, equality, and freedom. I believe we erred gravely when we shifted in the first half of the 20th century away from celebrating what America is an our great ideals, and (in my view) regressed to commemorating individuals instead, some of whom had questionable beneficial impact, from our past.
And our most beautiful currency, in my opinion, was the "Educationals" of 1896. We need to go back to that sort of thing, because it was better than dead presidents could ever be, even in theory.
And this notion that no woman has been depicted on our coins and currency is a totally bogus claim and an easily refuted bit of fiction. For one, we struck a commemorative half-dollar for the 1892 Columbian Exposition featuring Queen Isabella.
But far more importantly, for the first 150+ years of this nation's history, the obverse of most of our coins featured a woman, Lady Liberty in various forms, beginning with a freed slave woman and progressing to the Statue of Liberty on the 1921-1933 silver dollar.
I am not averse to redesigning our coins and currency, but I favor taking personages from our past entirely off all of them in favor of what our money used to depict, representations of our ideals of liberty, equality, and freedom. I believe we erred gravely when we shifted in the first half of the 20th century away from celebrating what America is an our great ideals, and (in my view) regressed to commemorating individuals instead, some of whom had questionable beneficial impact, from our past.
And our most beautiful currency, in my opinion, was the "Educationals" of 1896. We need to go back to that sort of thing, because it was better than dead presidents could ever be, even in theory.
1
why don't we get rid of the Mason secret-society ominous eye over the pyramid on the obtuse side of the bills? Stick a new face on there and keep the white slavers intact on the front? and change the slogan to : "In God we trust - all others pay cash".
2
Pleas, ms. Collins,
I'm already having shivers about a GOP picking SCOTUS. We don't need the country freaking out about gasp! a woman on money. Next thing you know she'll be earning, spending and managing it.
I'm already having shivers about a GOP picking SCOTUS. We don't need the country freaking out about gasp! a woman on money. Next thing you know she'll be earning, spending and managing it.
1
Or we could simply bag the idea of having anyone's portrait on money. We could adopt the post office idea of commemorative stamps. Imagine… designer money! People will want to collect the whole set. Instant national debt relief.
Being old fashioned I often go to the post office to buy stamps. (kids these are colorful pieces of paper with glue on the back that you put on an envelope where an address has been written that you put in a mailbox and little people sort and bring it to the address. While I'm at it 10 to 3 is the same as 2:50) Anyway we produce beautiful and interesting stamps. Why can't we do this with money? Our currency is really boring. I vote for Tom Brady too for the $20, deflated football or not. Certainly less of a crime than displacing and killing American Indians. He didn't actually injure the Colts, just beat them. And he is a Patriot.
2
According to the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office, if America gets rid of its $1 bill and replaces it with a dollar coin, the U.S. will save $5.5 billion on printing costs over the next 30 years.
Both the Eurozone and United Kingdom have switched to a coin. As a nation we are long over due in honoring a great american Eleanor Roosevelt. I can think of no better way then putting her on the new one dollar coin.
Both the Eurozone and United Kingdom have switched to a coin. As a nation we are long over due in honoring a great american Eleanor Roosevelt. I can think of no better way then putting her on the new one dollar coin.
1
About making paper money identifiable to the blind: My blind mother used the folding technique. The key was to have a non-blind friend create different folded shapes for different currency amounts. It worked, and it didn't matter one bit whose picture was folded over!
2
It's edifying to hear the English change to new celebrities on their currency with regularity. Changing from a Jackson to a Tubman shouldn't be a big deal, except in the media, where anything and everything is sensationalized to the point of numbness. I look forward to seeing Lenny Bruce, Pat Rpbertson, or Dr. Charles R. Drew on U.S. currency, who really cares as long as it spends.
What hope do we have to move with dispatch on the really difficult problems facing our country, like gun violence or income inequality or infrastructure deterioration or ISIS or global warming or the loss of manufacturing jobs to Asia, when it apparently will take years to get Harriet Tubman on a $20 bill?
If we start now to get Harriet on the $20, maybe we could fast-track her onto a brand-new denomination – say, a $15 bill – and promote her when the $20 is finally ready. Treasury could then cancel the $15 and only have to redeem a fraction of them, because of the collectors hanging onto the temporary bills as an investment. We would end up honoring Harriet and helping to reduce the national debt.
If we start now to get Harriet on the $20, maybe we could fast-track her onto a brand-new denomination – say, a $15 bill – and promote her when the $20 is finally ready. Treasury could then cancel the $15 and only have to redeem a fraction of them, because of the collectors hanging onto the temporary bills as an investment. We would end up honoring Harriet and helping to reduce the national debt.
The 1814 signing of the Treaty of Fort Jackson signaled the end for the Creek Nation and for all Indians in the South.[31] Friendly Creek leaders, like Selocta and Big Warrior, addressed Sharp Knife (the Indian nickname for Andrew Jackson) and reminded him that they keep the peace. Nevertheless, Jackson retorted that they did not "cut (Tecumseh's) throat" when they had the chance, so they must now cede Creek lands. Jackson also ignored Article 9 of the Treaty of Ghent that restored sovereignty to Indians and their nations.
Jackson opened this first peace session by faintly acknowledging the help of the friendly Creeks. That done, he turned to the Red Sticks and admonished them for listening to evil counsel. For their crime, he said, the entire Creek Nation must pay. He demanded the equivalent of all expenses incurred by the United States in prosecuting the war, which by his calculation came to 23,000,000 acres (93,000 km2) of land. - Robert V. Remini, Andrew Jackson
Jackson opened this first peace session by faintly acknowledging the help of the friendly Creeks. That done, he turned to the Red Sticks and admonished them for listening to evil counsel. For their crime, he said, the entire Creek Nation must pay. He demanded the equivalent of all expenses incurred by the United States in prosecuting the war, which by his calculation came to 23,000,000 acres (93,000 km2) of land. - Robert V. Remini, Andrew Jackson
4
The choices on the poll were limited. I would have also like to see the inclusion of Abigail Adams ("remember the women"} or Dolley Madison (Saved G. Washington's Portrait and more during the War of 1812)
Clara Barton, founder of the Red Cross
Madame CJ Walker, first female self made millionaire
Madame CJ Walker, first female self made millionaire
Not a bad idea--would be good to have someone other than a white man. More important, though, would be to extinguish the trivial penny and nickel, and get some small, long-lasting dollar and 5 dollar coins. These actions save money.
(When I was young the penny was trivial, and there's been over 15-fold inflation since.)
(When I was young the penny was trivial, and there's been over 15-fold inflation since.)
1
Why not put a mirror on the $20? Then everybody and anybody can be on the $20.
1
Tubman is a good choice, but to some degree I think she was chosen because of a feeling that to be on a bill, you need to have done something that is vaguely political or vaguely military. In a country where women didn't fight in wars and weren't allowed to vote for most of its history, that narrows the number of available choices.
Most other countries have artists and scientists on their bills as well. James Joyce is on one of the Irish Bills, despite having said that Ireland was an old sow that eats her farrow, and that he would rather let his country die for him. And as Gail pointed out, the Brits are replacing Charles Darwin with Jane Austen. If we were to put a female literary figure on the 20, the best choice is probably Emily Dickinson.
Most other countries have artists and scientists on their bills as well. James Joyce is on one of the Irish Bills, despite having said that Ireland was an old sow that eats her farrow, and that he would rather let his country die for him. And as Gail pointed out, the Brits are replacing Charles Darwin with Jane Austen. If we were to put a female literary figure on the 20, the best choice is probably Emily Dickinson.
2
It's unnecessary to demonize one person, in this case Andrew Jackson, in order to promote another such as Ivy Priest.
Frankly, I'd be more happy about my dollars if the portrait of a backyard chicken rather than a politician was on them.
Frankly, I'd be more happy about my dollars if the portrait of a backyard chicken rather than a politician was on them.
"The plan is to add a tactile feature that will allow blind people to identify the value of the currency."
No brainer. Use different size bills, as has been done in Europe (at least Switzerland) since before the 1980s. Oh, all those change and vending machines? The machines in (e.g.) Japan have been smarter than ours (they can read both sides of a bill in any orientation) for at least 20 years. So US industry has to actually do something besides count profits ...
No brainer. Use different size bills, as has been done in Europe (at least Switzerland) since before the 1980s. Oh, all those change and vending machines? The machines in (e.g.) Japan have been smarter than ours (they can read both sides of a bill in any orientation) for at least 20 years. So US industry has to actually do something besides count profits ...
2
Harriet Tubman?
Let's think about putting women we recognize and who are of current significance on the $20 bill. My list of nominees are.
- Madonna
- Taylor Swift
- Beyoncé
- Miranda Lambert (long shot but this is to appease our country neighbors)
- Ellen Degeneres
- Oprah
- Tina Fey
- Amy Pohler (a tie with Tina)
- Tina Fey/Amy Pohler (side by side)
- Lady Gaga
- Meryl Streep
- Whoopi Goldberg
- Wanda Rousey
And, the US Treasury should issue a new $2 and one-half dollar bill. For that I propose.
- Sarah Palin
- Michele Bachmann
- Sarah Palin/Michele Bachmann (side by side)
- Ann Coulter
- Phyllis Schlafly
- Gov. Jan Brewer
- Condi Rice
Deserving All!
footnote.... personally I am for the Combos of Fey/Pohler and Palin/Bachmann, but that is just my opinion.
Let's think about putting women we recognize and who are of current significance on the $20 bill. My list of nominees are.
- Madonna
- Taylor Swift
- Beyoncé
- Miranda Lambert (long shot but this is to appease our country neighbors)
- Ellen Degeneres
- Oprah
- Tina Fey
- Amy Pohler (a tie with Tina)
- Tina Fey/Amy Pohler (side by side)
- Lady Gaga
- Meryl Streep
- Whoopi Goldberg
- Wanda Rousey
And, the US Treasury should issue a new $2 and one-half dollar bill. For that I propose.
- Sarah Palin
- Michele Bachmann
- Sarah Palin/Michele Bachmann (side by side)
- Ann Coulter
- Phyllis Schlafly
- Gov. Jan Brewer
- Condi Rice
Deserving All!
footnote.... personally I am for the Combos of Fey/Pohler and Palin/Bachmann, but that is just my opinion.
Real funny money like Beyoncé dumping out a $20k bootleg version of Jay Z's Ace of Base premium French champagne. Why not just put an image of a fancy toilet with the lyrics to "Scheiße"-Lied school boy song? How about Andy Warhol and a bottle of Coke with a can of Campbells tomato soup on the back? Then when consumers buy stuff they don't need, they'll have a real artist to support them in their efforts. After all, money can't buy happiness or CAN IT?
It is true that Ulysses Grant owned slaves.
However, it should be pointed out that he freed his slaves and then paid them wages.
However, it should be pointed out that he freed his slaves and then paid them wages.
Eleanor Roosevelt is still the best choice and I voted for her ....... twice.
I think we are entitled to know what happened in the so called voting process.
Surely it wasn't a case of hanging chads and skullduggery somewhere in the counting process of the votes received from the citizenry.
Haven't we been there before ........ and unhappily so.
As for the Harriet Tubman. Let me point out the following:
http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/Bidenvice-presidentPewsurvey/2010/09/29/...
Name recognition does matter in the last analysis.
Eleanor Roosevelt deserves the honor for more than just one reason, given her endless and faithful service to our country for many years.
She was a woman for ALL the people ....... as well.
I think we are entitled to know what happened in the so called voting process.
Surely it wasn't a case of hanging chads and skullduggery somewhere in the counting process of the votes received from the citizenry.
Haven't we been there before ........ and unhappily so.
As for the Harriet Tubman. Let me point out the following:
http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/Bidenvice-presidentPewsurvey/2010/09/29/...
Name recognition does matter in the last analysis.
Eleanor Roosevelt deserves the honor for more than just one reason, given her endless and faithful service to our country for many years.
She was a woman for ALL the people ....... as well.
1
You do know that newsmax is a right-wing pseudo-news website right? These days since even the "legitimate" news sources specialize in pseudo-news one cannot tell the difference easily, but there it is.
Solely on the basis of the receptions he has received from the members of the US Congress (29 standing ovations?) I nominate Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Tubman? Were she alive today I don't think she'd even break double figures.
1
Harriet Tubman deserves to be celebrated.
No one knows the number of slaves Harriet Tubman freed, the number is widely disputed, but all thoughtful people recognize that she represents the very best of the American story. Poor, black, female and born into bondage, she simply could not abide by the injustice that was slavery. She risked her life to escape to freedom and then repeatedly, over and over risked her life to free other slaves. Her life story symbolizes the universal rebellion against injustice and our great thirst for freedom. At one time she had the highest bounty ever placed on a person by the government and still she eluded the bounty hunters time and time again. When the war came, she went on to become a spy for the Union army. Live free or die! Her life was a testament to our highest values, to the movement toward social justice.
If she were a white man, she'd take up whole chapters in history books and there'd be a monument in every park.
No one knows the number of slaves Harriet Tubman freed, the number is widely disputed, but all thoughtful people recognize that she represents the very best of the American story. Poor, black, female and born into bondage, she simply could not abide by the injustice that was slavery. She risked her life to escape to freedom and then repeatedly, over and over risked her life to free other slaves. Her life story symbolizes the universal rebellion against injustice and our great thirst for freedom. At one time she had the highest bounty ever placed on a person by the government and still she eluded the bounty hunters time and time again. When the war came, she went on to become a spy for the Union army. Live free or die! Her life was a testament to our highest values, to the movement toward social justice.
If she were a white man, she'd take up whole chapters in history books and there'd be a monument in every park.
7
My first thought was that Eleanor Roosevelt would be a better choice for the $20 but after reading Gail's column, I think I've changed my mind. Harriet Tubman would be an excellent choice. Hers is a story of personal courage and national redemption and her likeness on the $20 would honor this country in a way that the other choices could not.
4
Why not replace Salmon P. Chase with Tubman on the $10,000 bill? No Jackson supporters will be upset, and Chase probably has none.
If Democrats ever get hold of more of the economy I believe the $10K note will be in free circulation sooner than later.
If Democrats ever get hold of more of the economy I believe the $10K note will be in free circulation sooner than later.
The list of nominees is incomplete without Sally Hemmings.
I'd also include Marilyn Monroe, but she's apparently ineligible due to racial considerations.
I'd also include Marilyn Monroe, but she's apparently ineligible due to racial considerations.
1
If our currency is to be determined by committee it should be one made up of design professionals. A team to define and address all aspects of our paper currency and provide an overview and an analysis before undertaking any
redesign.
Iconography- including more that images of historical figures, is only a small part of redesigning our currency to better serve all users' needs.
What an amazing design adventure it would be!
redesign.
Iconography- including more that images of historical figures, is only a small part of redesigning our currency to better serve all users' needs.
What an amazing design adventure it would be!
It would seem the difficulty of putting a new person on a bill is just another area we are a lesser country. Need I mention medical care, the ability to run an election in 6 weeks and to recall automobiles
4
A more important reason for keeping Hamilton on the $10: the Lazy Sunday digital short from SNL. The Hamilton $10 is the hero of that story.
1
Why just one woman? Tokenism doesn't cut it. Elizabeth Caty Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Alice Paul, Margaret Sanger, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks. There are plenty of women who changed history but still get very little acknowledgement alongside the war mongers, land barons and slave owners who dominate the print in our history books.
http://www.cheesefoodnation.com
http://www.cheesefoodnation.com
5
What history books are you reading? American historians are publishing large numbers of books and articles on all the people you mention. This has heavily influenced the college textbooks that large number of young people are exposed to.
It is not realistic to think that in current political/cultural climate, we can get Margaret Sanger on any of our bills. But I do admire Sanger, despite her support for eugenics.
It is not realistic to think that in current political/cultural climate, we can get Margaret Sanger on any of our bills. But I do admire Sanger, despite her support for eugenics.
Don't waste your time on paper money. It's on its way to the junk heap of history. Debit and credit cards are here to stay. Email, text or tweet your bank to demand that it put holographic pics of contemporary American heroes on each card reflecting the race, religion, color and sexual orientation of each cardholder.
I'm fine with Harriet Tubman on the 20, as long as Kim Kardashian is on all of the counterfeit currency.
how about candice swanepoel?
In so much as Andrew Jackson on the 20 dollar bill causes such discussion and hubbub, his visage should remain there. US currency should be standardized as is, each person depicted has had a major impact on US history (okay, maybe not Franklin, put Teddy there, okay just leave Ben alone) and if it provokes discussion so much the better for a populace increasingly unmindful of their history.
Sometimes at the gas station, the attendants have invariably immigrated here, if I use a fifty I'll point to the picture and tell him "He's the best man that ever lived". A twenty will illicit "Some people won't use these because of what he did". I find it interesting and amusing, the attendants not so much.
Sometimes at the gas station, the attendants have invariably immigrated here, if I use a fifty I'll point to the picture and tell him "He's the best man that ever lived". A twenty will illicit "Some people won't use these because of what he did". I find it interesting and amusing, the attendants not so much.
Why change, and why make sex (religion, race, etc.) a criteria?
My question is this: Why is this whole notion limited to just changing the $20?
It seems like the idea is "if we just ask for this one little thing" maybe the powers that be will pat us on the head and give us this. People! In negotiating you ask for more than you want because you'll never get it all. All we got now is dead white men. Yes, some were important and even "good" in a relative way, but we have so many possible women - and not just politicians PLEASE - artists, writers, musicians. Don't ask for one, ask for seven and grudgingly accept three (for now.) American Exceptionalism is such a self-satirical concept the way it is practiced. All these other countries are so much more creative and respectful of their diversity.
It seems like the idea is "if we just ask for this one little thing" maybe the powers that be will pat us on the head and give us this. People! In negotiating you ask for more than you want because you'll never get it all. All we got now is dead white men. Yes, some were important and even "good" in a relative way, but we have so many possible women - and not just politicians PLEASE - artists, writers, musicians. Don't ask for one, ask for seven and grudgingly accept three (for now.) American Exceptionalism is such a self-satirical concept the way it is practiced. All these other countries are so much more creative and respectful of their diversity.
60
Dolly Madison on the $20.
Oh, Gail, you've always got something up your sleeve! I'm in your exact generation, so yeah, strangely, I do recall the name Ivy Baker Priest. No memory of where or how I heard the name, though.
But here's an idea! I propose Gail Collins as a woman who should be on some kind of currency. I'll take any denomination, but it would bring me such joy!
I put my money on Gail. Or... Gail on my money!
But here's an idea! I propose Gail Collins as a woman who should be on some kind of currency. I'll take any denomination, but it would bring me such joy!
I put my money on Gail. Or... Gail on my money!
5
We should outsource our currency creation to China or India. It'll be done in six months. Santa Claus maybe on it and the currency amount may have decimal places but it won't matter a wit as the next good rain storm it will disintegrate.
But it will get done and someone will make a HUGE profit on it.
But it will get done and someone will make a HUGE profit on it.
good column! i had no idea this was being considered.
your historical references got me thinking..... obviously the people that founded and moulded this country during the first 75 to 100 years were not perfect...... but they were passionate and active participants. they had extremely different ideas about it's direction. over all everything has turned out pretty well considering what might have happened. all the ideas were on the table and debated. some wrongs have been righted and others are on course to be corrected.
i wish that the eligible voting public would exercise their right and participate as the great men and women of our past did. our country would be a lot better off.
your historical references got me thinking..... obviously the people that founded and moulded this country during the first 75 to 100 years were not perfect...... but they were passionate and active participants. they had extremely different ideas about it's direction. over all everything has turned out pretty well considering what might have happened. all the ideas were on the table and debated. some wrongs have been righted and others are on course to be corrected.
i wish that the eligible voting public would exercise their right and participate as the great men and women of our past did. our country would be a lot better off.
2
Instead of launching a big Tubman vs Jackson fight, why not just create a new $25 or $30 bill? A bill of one of those denominations would actually be handy to have.
3
Ordering off the menu is absolutely the right idea.
So let's think big.
Leave Jackson be, and put Tubman on a new $200 bill!
So let's think big.
Leave Jackson be, and put Tubman on a new $200 bill!
@Nashvillekat
Good idea!
I would likewise propose that we make a $3 bill with Oscar Wilde on it. We could use them to pay bakers and florists in Indiana and Arkansas.
Good idea!
I would likewise propose that we make a $3 bill with Oscar Wilde on it. We could use them to pay bakers and florists in Indiana and Arkansas.
Thanks, Ms. C., for introducing absolutely gripping questions, such as "Did you see the musical "Hamilton"?
Also, the whole concept of revising our academic history books to include The Founding Moms could simply revolutionize how our youth views our past.
Furthermore, everyone likes Tom Brady; also, he may win his current objection to the penalties waged against him (calculated in the millions)! If he does win in court, then couldn't our country have A Tom Sunday just to indicate our values?
Well, not to worry; your humor saves the day, no matter what.
Also, the whole concept of revising our academic history books to include The Founding Moms could simply revolutionize how our youth views our past.
Furthermore, everyone likes Tom Brady; also, he may win his current objection to the penalties waged against him (calculated in the millions)! If he does win in court, then couldn't our country have A Tom Sunday just to indicate our values?
Well, not to worry; your humor saves the day, no matter what.
1
Rosa Parks!
2
She was one of the choices, too. :) Also, Eleanor Roosevelt.
Given the vast negative response to a "black" man in the White House, we should be prepared for serious currency disruption if the first woman on a bill is black.
6
Too much discussion without a mention of the dollar coin! I know it's out there somewhere, but we should see lots more of them. And if I'm correct, there's already a woman on it: Susan B. Anthony.
1
Because of its size, the Susan B. Anthony dollar was easily confused with the common quarter. It's hardly a fair comparison, considering she's on a coin so few of us like or want to use.
Sacajawea, too.
Harriet Tubman is an amazing woman, an ancestor whose strength and courage is living in the hearts of so many today who struggle for justice. She, as much as anyone, epitomizes the remarkable, centuries-long insistence by Black people that they are full human beings who deserve to live, breathe, and grow - despite an entire system and culture built and designed to ensure the opposite.
When I think of what Jackson represents, and the kind of country we are today, we're far, far closer to Jackson than we are to Tubman (especially when you learn more about her life, her work, and her vision beyond the school book version most of us know).
So I oppose putting Harriet Tubman on the $20. It isn't that she doesn't deserve it. Rather, it's that we don't deserve to have her.
When I think of what Jackson represents, and the kind of country we are today, we're far, far closer to Jackson than we are to Tubman (especially when you learn more about her life, her work, and her vision beyond the school book version most of us know).
So I oppose putting Harriet Tubman on the $20. It isn't that she doesn't deserve it. Rather, it's that we don't deserve to have her.
49
" It isn't that she doesn't deserve it. Rather, it's that we don't deserve to have her."
_______________
We NEED her more than we deserve her.
_______________
We NEED her more than we deserve her.
Have you seen the new Canadian currency? It's clear--really--it has polymer panels in it so parts of it are transparent! I'd say it looks like play money, but it's so much cooler than any play money I've ever seen. And we can't change a picture without years of effort.
But then, the Canadians have had dollar and two dollar coins for years, too. We, of course, can't give up the green back despite it's expense to the treasury. It's all part of being exceptional.
But then, the Canadians have had dollar and two dollar coins for years, too. We, of course, can't give up the green back despite it's expense to the treasury. It's all part of being exceptional.
12
Canadian currency also has a series of raised dots similar to braille on all the 'paper' money to identify the value of the bill.
This seems an attempt to get a twofer on the twenty. How about Martha Washington? Dolley Madison? Does it have to be a liberal icon? Then don't complain when President Cruz puts Ronald Reagan on the dime.
2
Harriet Tubman is not a liberal icon unless you believe slavery is a conservative cause.
Because Reagan was a movie actor without a clue. And Tubman actually helped people. Why is she a "liberal" icon? Don't conservatives tout freedom all the time ?
If you want a woman on the $20 bill, I still favor Pocahontas.
1
How about Harriet Beecher Stowe? Uncle Tom's Cabin was the biggest selling book in the US in the 19th century (after the bible), and she had as big an impact on the battle against slavery as anyone.
There's an easy solution. Put General Thomas Jonathan (Stonewall) Jackson on the $20 bill.
1
As our democracy morphs into a kleptocracy, we need new icons on our money to truly reflect the state of things. How about Andrew Carnegie and JP Morgan for starters? Steve Jobs?
4
Harriet Tubman is an excellent choice as the replacement for Andrew Jackson. She fought against incredible odds to free enslaved people in the South & is a great humanitarian. Not only was she an activist in the abolitionist movement of the first order, she also served the Union Army as a nurse, scout, & spy. She is known as the Moses of the slaves, working under the guidance of God to free her people in the promised land. Tubman, a deeply religious woman, resembles Joan of Arc in that she claims she had spiritual dreams in which angels appeared to guide her. She used her revelatory dreams & visions of maps to get parties of fugitive slaves across otherwise unknown terrain, even across a flooded river.
It is noteworthy to mention that the US Constitution protected the institution of slavery, including a fugitive slave clause & 3/5 clause. These clauses allowed Southern states to count slaves for the purposes of representation in the federal government. Changing the Constitution which condoned slavery required the deeply religious will of tremendous heroes like Harriet Tubman.
The US currency includes the phrase, "In God We Trust." It is only fitting to begin to right the past wrongs of our country by putting images of great humanitarians on our money to remind us of our greatest aspirations. Guatemala honors their state bird, the Quetzal, nahual (spirit guide.) All endangered species should be honored including humanitarians to remind us of what we are losing.
It is noteworthy to mention that the US Constitution protected the institution of slavery, including a fugitive slave clause & 3/5 clause. These clauses allowed Southern states to count slaves for the purposes of representation in the federal government. Changing the Constitution which condoned slavery required the deeply religious will of tremendous heroes like Harriet Tubman.
The US currency includes the phrase, "In God We Trust." It is only fitting to begin to right the past wrongs of our country by putting images of great humanitarians on our money to remind us of our greatest aspirations. Guatemala honors their state bird, the Quetzal, nahual (spirit guide.) All endangered species should be honored including humanitarians to remind us of what we are losing.
7
In the alternate universe on the terrific show "Fringe," the face of Martin Luther King, Jr. was printed on the $20.00 bill. Could be done in our universe, too.
4
What would we who are not complete autodidacts do without you, Gail? Thanks so much for another entertaining history lesson!
Yes, there was a time when women had to marry to get their hands on money. (For bachelors, I've heard, it was a period of unbridalled optimism.)
Yes, there was a time when women had to marry to get their hands on money. (For bachelors, I've heard, it was a period of unbridalled optimism.)
6
No pun intended?
I think we should scrap the whole system and follow Europe's example of revolving figures. European money is beautiful, honors historical and cultural figures. The graphics are beautiful and probably more counterfeit proof than ors. The bills are changed more often than once every 50 years. As for the blind I don't see how currency counting machines could handle different sizes, but there must be a way because I saw multiple sized bills throughout Europe. As for Sacajewa, she's no heroine to American Indians, so I vote he off. How about Dolley Madison, Emilia Earhart, Dorothy Dix (emancipator of the mentally ill)?
7
A lot of us men would also like to see Tubman on the 20. She placed herself in great danger to save her people, and fought for them- and us- until the end of her life.
Jackson liked to murder Indians, and then renege on treaties with the survivors. He was just another charismatic bully, from a frontier region where it was OK to steal and kill if you could figure out a way to get away with it. Our oil patch has kept that tradition.
This $20 switch is obvious. If the bureaucrats say it will take years, maybe that's because they're churning it for their own job security. For once, let's get Congress on board here.
Jackson liked to murder Indians, and then renege on treaties with the survivors. He was just another charismatic bully, from a frontier region where it was OK to steal and kill if you could figure out a way to get away with it. Our oil patch has kept that tradition.
This $20 switch is obvious. If the bureaucrats say it will take years, maybe that's because they're churning it for their own job security. For once, let's get Congress on board here.
6
He also paid off the national debt which started a long depression. That should be a warning to the balanced budget and gold standard crowd.
With a little determination, it's amazing what can be achieved, given a focus.
And a deadline. If the UK can change bills repeatedly, surely our country is capable of doing the same, even with research and bureaucracy factored in.
Harriet Tubman deserves to be on the $20.
Make it happen.
And a deadline. If the UK can change bills repeatedly, surely our country is capable of doing the same, even with research and bureaucracy factored in.
Harriet Tubman deserves to be on the $20.
Make it happen.
11
For all the value a twenty dollar bill has today, I don't care if you put Limbaugh's picture on it.
It won't matter which white mediocre man is on the currency if it all goes the way of books, mail and other paper goods.
1
I think I am pretty much OK with keeping our currency limited to founding fathers and ex-presidents despite the large white male skew... especially since our next president almost certainly will be a woman. Go Hillary! How about an Obama $20 and a Hillary Clinton $100... Maybe in 2040 or 2050?
If we had a tradition of putting random scientist and just generally good people on our coinage and currency than a Tubman $20 would make perfect sense. However, on the rare occassion that we put generally historically important people on coins for demographic representation it just seems really forced, case in point, the Sacagewea dollar coin. Really? That's what stamps are for. No one could doubt that Tubman is a righteous noteworthy person... and undoubtedly a better person than Jackson, and if those were the people we put on money, than fine.
That being said, I would like to see a Dr. King note... Though it might sound hypocritical and sexist to accept him and deride Sacagewa. However, although he wasn't a president, I do consider him a founding father in a very real sense because the America before him and after him were quite different places for a large swath of Americans in no small part because of his direct efforts. The closest equivalent founding mother is Susan B. Anthony and she was already on a coin.
If we had a tradition of putting random scientist and just generally good people on our coinage and currency than a Tubman $20 would make perfect sense. However, on the rare occassion that we put generally historically important people on coins for demographic representation it just seems really forced, case in point, the Sacagewea dollar coin. Really? That's what stamps are for. No one could doubt that Tubman is a righteous noteworthy person... and undoubtedly a better person than Jackson, and if those were the people we put on money, than fine.
That being said, I would like to see a Dr. King note... Though it might sound hypocritical and sexist to accept him and deride Sacagewa. However, although he wasn't a president, I do consider him a founding father in a very real sense because the America before him and after him were quite different places for a large swath of Americans in no small part because of his direct efforts. The closest equivalent founding mother is Susan B. Anthony and she was already on a coin.
35
Neither Alexander Hamilton nor Benjamin Franklin ever served as president of the United States.
Not exactly new information Kath.... Both are generally considered founding fathers, the other category expressly mentioned as part of our currency tradition.
1
Most famous Americans powerful enough to have a major impact on U.S. history come with baggage. Andrew Jackson signed the act that put the Cherokee on the “Trail of Tears.” Abraham Lincoln signed the order that sent the Navajo on “The Long Walk,” the Navaho version of the “Trail of Tears.” Franklin Delano Roosevelt put Japanese American in internment camps. The modern-day vilification of American political leaders by both liberal and conservatives ensure that no present or future president will be enshrined on our paper currency. It seems the days of heroes is past. Why not replace faces of actual people with images of America’s national park. We could start by replacing the Egyptian pyramid with the weird eye on the dollar bill with Yosemite National Park’s El Capitan.
97
I agree. No faces but rather pictures of our National Parks. El Capitan,
Old Faithful, The Grand Canyon, The gateway Arch for starters.
Old Faithful, The Grand Canyon, The gateway Arch for starters.
1
Of course, having Ms Tubman replace slave owner Jackson seems a 'cry for freedom and justice', but its time may not be in the cards. Another issue that you didn't mention, and worth considering, is why a secular country displays prominently, on every bill, "In God we trust". Just asking.
7
i voted on the website but not for Harriet Tubman. As a retired historian, my choice was Eleanor Roosevelt who I believe had far more impact on the status of women in this country than did Tubman. One of the causes she led was to encourage black domestics during the depression to strike for higher wages from their white southern female employers. That cause comprised the founding of Eleanor clubs. The basic message was pay up or wash your own clothing and dishes. I liked that stance because I was born and raised in the South. Oh well, I lost the election and can live with that fact. Here is a factoid Gail Collins seems not to know. Jackson did love his wife, Rachel. He also committed adultery with her. When his political enemies pointed that out, he vowed to hang them. Of course, he hanged a lot of people. I would be happy if his face was not on the $20 bill. He really did little that was positive during his two terms. His specie circular in 1836 left behind a depression as an inaugural gift for his successor in the White House.
6
I would recommend Frances Perkins who as Labor Secretary under FDR introduced Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, and the minimum wage. She had also worked on improving social and working conditions with Teddy Roosevelt after his presidency, before as a woman she even was able to vote. FDR trusted her and always refused her offer to resign. She was often savagely pilloried by male rivals, the Republicans and the press and even survived an impeachment attempt. She helped Jews, European Labor leaders and avant garde artists to come to the US and escape Hitler's clutches. She was passionate in her desire to improve life for millions but very diplomatic and discreet. Her husband was mentally unstable so she was the main breadwinner. Her daughter also had to be helped out as an adult. Read her wonderful biography by Kirsten Downey!
12
Growing up in the hamlet of Sherwood, New York, I learned early about strong, courageous women like Harriet Tubman. The Tubman home and museum are in nearby Auburn; Seneca Falls, home of women's suffrage, is just a few miles west of Auburn; Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States at what is now Hobart College in Geneva; and my little Sherwood was a station on the Underground Railroad and home to Emily Howland, philanthropist, educator, suffragist, and abolitionist, a woman of many "firsts." The stories of these remarkable women should be familiar to every American; Tubman on the twenty is a good way to highlight her contributions and perhaps to begin a series of opportunities to learn about worthy women, African Americans, and others who played significant but less widely known roles in our history.
2
Lady Liberty…that statue in the harbor. Freedom, strength, national pride, a welcoming arm. A perfect representative of the nation, even if somewhat overblown.
5
By all means we need to spend money to make new presses for the new bills and make sure that Cash machines recognize the new bills, becasue Treasury has nothing better to do. So all around it's going to cost a bit to produce these new bills and for what? Because some feminist group thought it would be a good idea to have a woman on US Currency?
5
Replace Alexander Hamilton? The FIRST TREASURY SECRETARY? The man who managed to get us a national currency and the reason we HAVE dollars? One of the main authors of the CONSTITUTION? The man doesn't have a monument but should, at least leave him on the $10. With or without a Broadway hit.
15
....plus he's kinda cute...
Save your spleen for a more worthy cause, Gail.
In a few more years your iPhone will be your wallet and Hamilton, like Jackson and George and Lincoln and whoever else's moniker graces the rest of those bills will be a thing of the past.
All that will matter is that you have your money on the other side of that "buy" button.
In a few more years your iPhone will be your wallet and Hamilton, like Jackson and George and Lincoln and whoever else's moniker graces the rest of those bills will be a thing of the past.
All that will matter is that you have your money on the other side of that "buy" button.
Quicker to the process to add another note value that might be more useful than a penny? How about a "$25 dollar bill" - stick Harriet on it and call it a day! I bet within 5 years the $20 bill will go by way of the $2 bill - seen more rarely and not welcome in the wallet for its awkwardness.
4
Really.!! this is what we need to be spending time and effort on when there are major international problems - especially in the MidEast, Russia North Korea Israel... Almost as much needless sturm und drang on this as on air in footballs. Which is more banal and trivial I don t know...I do miss the fact that Ms. Collins couldn t figure out how to get Mitt Romney s dog into this story..
3
Let's put Mitt's Dog on the $20 bill!
When you speak of the blind, two wonderful women come immediately to mind. Anne Sullivan and Helen Keller. I would urge us to consider these ladies for the one and five dollar bill. Then, for the ten an old favorite of mine Margaret Meade who was vastly more intelligent than a room full of PhD's. For the twenty I would nominate Shirley Chisholm. These woman probably did more for mankind and human understanding than the whole list of Presidents, most of whom are uninspiring.
2
I'm pretty confident that Congress will show the rest of us their infinite wisdom and vote to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 dollar bill, especially since the first African American President of these United States thought it was a pretty good idea.
Yes, I can definitely see all the Republicans voting for a woman and runaway slave to replace Andrew Jackson, especially since it also would be the morally correct thing to do.
As a woman, I thank you in advance, Republicans, for your enlightened thinking.
Yes, I can definitely see all the Republicans voting for a woman and runaway slave to replace Andrew Jackson, especially since it also would be the morally correct thing to do.
As a woman, I thank you in advance, Republicans, for your enlightened thinking.
5
LOL
Sarcasm, right?
What is it that makes the USA compulsive about putting politicians on its money?
Why not artists? Emily Dickinson, our most admired woman poet, for example.
Why not artists? Emily Dickinson, our most admired woman poet, for example.
22
Willa Cather versus Emily Dickinson?
My money's on Willa.
(Willa's on my money?)
My money's on Willa.
(Willa's on my money?)
Look at the Euro which has many homages to art, and passes on deifying politicians based on lore not history. It is yet another example of the fundamental US narcissism voyaging incognito as exceptionalism.
If we put politicians on our bills, we make the process political. So let's think women poets, writers, scientists, doctors. (Toni Morrison, Grace Hopper!)
Jackson has better hair than Taubman...how about Angela Davis with her afro?
4
Canadian banknotes have raised bumps in one corner of the bills to indicate the value.
Better still, our notes are now a washable polymer, so money laundering is facilitated.
bankofcanada.ca/banknotes/materials-download-order/blind-and-partially-sighted/
Better still, our notes are now a washable polymer, so money laundering is facilitated.
bankofcanada.ca/banknotes/materials-download-order/blind-and-partially-sighted/
4
Canada also went from having queen Elizabeth on all their paper currency to not...Canada also dropped the one and two dollar bills (queer as a two dollar bill was an odd expression to Canadians) and replaced them with coins. Canada also dropped the penny--nobody misses 'em. now if we could just drop the queen (or king) as head of state the job would be completely done...
Harriet Tubman is not only a woman but black. She would not only be the first woman on paper currency but the first black. But the right will have some ideological objections. First she is a woman and is not white. Second she had shown a striking contempt for personal property. Did she ever think of the investments in those whose assets she was stealing in contempt for state law?
Freedom you say. She stood for freedom. Those assets were human beings. The slave owners were exploiting human beings and stealing their labor and did not even provide a decent living although they didn’t need food stamps housing subsidies. Tubman was interfering with the freedom of the slave owners to run their plantations exactly as they wanted for their own profit.
This is the 21st century and freedom has a new definition which is being sold to the public. Freedom, the modern plantation owners say is not something provided by a document or the government, it belongs to those who can seize it. Since one man’s freedom may be slavery to another, freedom could not be universal, there was just so much to go around. The struggle for freedom is a zero sum game and our present exploiters want it all.
Perhaps we should honor great American artists, like George Gershwin or Fred Astaire since American music and movies have swept the world and stop with presidents and Founders. Want a black woman how about Ethel Waters.
Freedom you say. She stood for freedom. Those assets were human beings. The slave owners were exploiting human beings and stealing their labor and did not even provide a decent living although they didn’t need food stamps housing subsidies. Tubman was interfering with the freedom of the slave owners to run their plantations exactly as they wanted for their own profit.
This is the 21st century and freedom has a new definition which is being sold to the public. Freedom, the modern plantation owners say is not something provided by a document or the government, it belongs to those who can seize it. Since one man’s freedom may be slavery to another, freedom could not be universal, there was just so much to go around. The struggle for freedom is a zero sum game and our present exploiters want it all.
Perhaps we should honor great American artists, like George Gershwin or Fred Astaire since American music and movies have swept the world and stop with presidents and Founders. Want a black woman how about Ethel Waters.
9
It should have been Emma Lazarus. We are a nation of immigrants.
2
Or Sitting Bull (in honor of those who were here first).
Would the process be as lengthy if the U.S. were to consider adding another denomination as an alternative to replacing a current image?
I expect Harriet Tubman would get a chuckle out of her portrait on a bill of the denomination equal to her purchase price, and Harvey Milk would laugh into eternity if his portrait were on a $3 bill.
Inasmuch as Apple is trying to abolish paper money, we could have Steve Jobs on a $0 bill. And as the Baseball Hall Of Fame has become shamelessly Seligized, it would be appropriate to issue a bill with Pete Rose's portrait in a denomination equal to his betting.
I expect Harriet Tubman would get a chuckle out of her portrait on a bill of the denomination equal to her purchase price, and Harvey Milk would laugh into eternity if his portrait were on a $3 bill.
Inasmuch as Apple is trying to abolish paper money, we could have Steve Jobs on a $0 bill. And as the Baseball Hall Of Fame has become shamelessly Seligized, it would be appropriate to issue a bill with Pete Rose's portrait in a denomination equal to his betting.
3
i vote for Gertrude Stein, if for no other reason it will drive the arch conservatives absolutely nuts!
6
Hamilton, incidentally, opened the first paragraph of the First Federalist Paper with the assertion that Americans' self-government "adds the inducements of philanthropy to those of patriotism"—meaning that we were intended by our Founders to be a philanthropic nation, an ennobling gift to humankind.
6
How about "Alfred E. Neuman"? Sorry, I just can't be serious. He did help get me through my rocky childhood.
15
Hear,hear. Bring back Alf for so many things. When is he going to announce for the GOP race? I'd vote for him.
along with the "what me worry" banner this would be perfect for our elected congress as it sits today.
Take back the greenback?
I've always wondered why, in the country where the dollar is next to God as an object of worship, why our paper notes are so grubby and so ugly.
There's that utilitarian green thing in your wallet, all wrinkled and dog eared, whereas some other countries that value design and cultural history have colorful currency with gracefully drawn faces of national heroes from the many walks of life that advance civilization: the sciences, the arts, or the fields of invention and exploration, you name it, there are plenty of more worthy figureheads in the world than just those who run for office.
Our national identity is mostly stuck at the iconization of a presidential figurehead. That's so fatherland of us, a nation that in actuality reveres innovation and is always so ahead of the curve in ways that further the circumstances of humankind.
I've always wondered why, in the country where the dollar is next to God as an object of worship, why our paper notes are so grubby and so ugly.
There's that utilitarian green thing in your wallet, all wrinkled and dog eared, whereas some other countries that value design and cultural history have colorful currency with gracefully drawn faces of national heroes from the many walks of life that advance civilization: the sciences, the arts, or the fields of invention and exploration, you name it, there are plenty of more worthy figureheads in the world than just those who run for office.
Our national identity is mostly stuck at the iconization of a presidential figurehead. That's so fatherland of us, a nation that in actuality reveres innovation and is always so ahead of the curve in ways that further the circumstances of humankind.
8
No need to change anything existing--just add new denominations. $25, $75, $150. Reinstate the $1000--with Oprah.
5
I believe we will get a woman in the White House far sooner than on the twenty. And I would think that might surprise all of our grandmothers and great grandmothers who struggled so hard just to get the right to vote.
Young females, think about the fact that my grandmother was not allowed to vote until 1920, then never, ever miss an election. I know I don't.
Young females, think about the fact that my grandmother was not allowed to vote until 1920, then never, ever miss an election. I know I don't.
166
In spite of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments neither black men nor women in the South were allowed to vote until 1965.
Thanks to the 5-4 2013 SCOTUS decision in Shelby County v. Holder which gutted the 2006 bipartisan political consensus behind the Voting Rights they are threatened with not being able to vote again.
White women were the greatest beneficiaries of the black led civil rights protests that led to the 1964 civil rights legislation.
Thanks to the 5-4 2013 SCOTUS decision in Shelby County v. Holder which gutted the 2006 bipartisan political consensus behind the Voting Rights they are threatened with not being able to vote again.
White women were the greatest beneficiaries of the black led civil rights protests that led to the 1964 civil rights legislation.
Hard to understand why the GOP hasn't made an issue of placing Ronald Reagan's portrait on every bill currently in use.
19
They have had their eye on the $10 bill for ages. I suspect it will happen if they hold the House and Senate and gain the White House in 2016.
Europeans put novelists, poets, philosophers and others on their money, that is, before using generalized architectural items to avoid putting one country against another,but we don't have that problem. On Faulkner, Dos Passos, Edith Wharton, and so on.
6
Why not put Gail Collins on the $20 bill?
87
Joan Jett
And Seamus the dog on the back!
Harriet Tubman would be a good choice if we switched the faces on our currency every few years as do the British, but her impact on U.S. history and the effectiveness of the Underground Railroad are grossly exaggerated. Estimates of the number of slaves who escaped via the Underground Railroad range from 6,000 to 30,000 over a 30- to 40-year period. It made little impact on slavery since the number of escaped slaves was far lower each year than the number of people born into slavery each year. And Tubman was merely one of many Underground Railroad operatives. She began her work on the Underground Railroad in 1850—15 years before slavery was abolished nationwide—and is credited for leading about 70 slaves to freedom before the Civil War. During the Civil War, she was a participant in the Combahee River Raid, which freed about 750 slaves in 1863, but these 750 slaves would have been freed by the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865. Tubman reduced the number of years about a thousand people spent in slavery by a few years. She did not have neatly the impact that Andrew Jackson did on U.S. history. It’s true that Jackson distrusted big banks, a distrust shared by millions of Americans today. It is also true that he fought Indians, the British. The Gulf Coast states from Florida to Louisiana are part of the United States because of men like Andrew Jackson.
20
And your point is...? A thousand people...you have to wonder why she even bothered!
13
You really should be ashamed of yourself.
How many lives have you ever saved or changed for the better?
How many lives have you ever saved or changed for the better?
9
@William Case: Perhaps you might want to include a definition of "symbolism" in your personal dictionary; that is the intent here. If we were to really focus on the specific qualifications, or grade them if you will, then the qualities Mr. Jackson possessed as outlined here by Ms. Collins should cause us to burn every $20 bill in existence.
10
Agree that it's way past time for a portrait change. However, by the time they get it done, we'll be using some form of digital currency, not paper and coin. So why bother other than to recognize people more appropriate than those now appearing on bills.
2
Let's not gloss over the dark side of Ivy Baker Priest.
She was in the Treasury's driver seat when the United States put "In God We Trust" on our dollars bills in 1957, a gross violation of the principle of separation of church and state that to this day has helped dupe half the country into thinking we're a church and not a country.
It wasn't really her fault, it was our glorious Congress that passed the 1956 law declaring 'In God We Trust' our national motto as a paranoid, McCarthyite overreaction to the depths of the Cold War as the US tried to 'distinguish' itself from 'godless' communism and the USSR.
Like the 2001 Patriot Act after it, Congress always likes to pass its worst, Constitutional-shredding laws at the height of national paranoia when our character is at its worst.
Ivy Baker Priest also said “I'm often wrong, but never in doubt", a perfect summary of both our churched currency and the entire modern Republican Party platform.
I'm surprised the country never bothered to change its name to the United States of Jesus to reflect its Bibled sensibility.
The black woman we need on the $20 bill is the great Oseola McCarty, the poor washerwoman from Hattiesburg, Mississippi who saved every nickel and dollar from her extremely meager pay and gave her $150,000 life’s savings to the University of Southern Mississippi to provide scholarships for poor people.
Take the nonsensical 'In God We Trust' off the money and put the godlike face of Oseola McCarty on our money.
She was in the Treasury's driver seat when the United States put "In God We Trust" on our dollars bills in 1957, a gross violation of the principle of separation of church and state that to this day has helped dupe half the country into thinking we're a church and not a country.
It wasn't really her fault, it was our glorious Congress that passed the 1956 law declaring 'In God We Trust' our national motto as a paranoid, McCarthyite overreaction to the depths of the Cold War as the US tried to 'distinguish' itself from 'godless' communism and the USSR.
Like the 2001 Patriot Act after it, Congress always likes to pass its worst, Constitutional-shredding laws at the height of national paranoia when our character is at its worst.
Ivy Baker Priest also said “I'm often wrong, but never in doubt", a perfect summary of both our churched currency and the entire modern Republican Party platform.
I'm surprised the country never bothered to change its name to the United States of Jesus to reflect its Bibled sensibility.
The black woman we need on the $20 bill is the great Oseola McCarty, the poor washerwoman from Hattiesburg, Mississippi who saved every nickel and dollar from her extremely meager pay and gave her $150,000 life’s savings to the University of Southern Mississippi to provide scholarships for poor people.
Take the nonsensical 'In God We Trust' off the money and put the godlike face of Oseola McCarty on our money.
452
Fannie Lou Hamer or Ella Baker.
1
Socrates, very astute observations and articulated well. I would start with removing "In God We Trust" off all dollar bills (as well as "...one nation, under God.." from the Pledge of Allegience). But to commission a study will take years and will provide further justification to keep the status quo.
3
That was also the time when "under God" was added to the pledge to the flag.
1
General Tubman, as John Brown called her, is more than ready to relieve General Jackson.
223
Bring back the paper $2 bill with whatever face is desired. Since it never got the newest technology in it, here's the opportunity. And since everything that cost $1 until recently now costs $2 or more, the bill will become common.
23
We should introduce a new $3 bill and put Hillary's face on it.
1
The $2 bill is still around. My husband gets them all the time. They're very uncommon, but still in print.
Honestly, I'm tired of the faces of old, everywhere ---- and it is not that I don't respect them, but these men and women never drove a car. It's as if their thought is inapplicable or at least not been tested. It's like my girl-friend who keeps insisting I wear skirts, but she is sitting at a desk or going to parties, I am usually crawling around on the floor with the grandkids or picking them up off the floor.
And as to the Braille on the $10 --- I imagine having at least one bill marked would allow a blind person to order his wallet more perfectly. When I first met my husband, sometimes on the weekends we would play cards with his family, which included his step-mother's blind brother. We played with Braille cards and if he dealt a showdown, he knew who had what and kept track of the table --- his mind was amazing.
But he often commented about playing with friends (not family), about how he couldn't keep track of his money. We played with nickels and dimes, which he knew by hand, but eventually he might need change, which involved bills and there he was at a disadvantage. I knew that he ordered his wallet then, trying to keep track. And I know he suspected someone of taking advantage of him. So, I imagine having one bill marked would be of immense help.
And as to the Braille on the $10 --- I imagine having at least one bill marked would allow a blind person to order his wallet more perfectly. When I first met my husband, sometimes on the weekends we would play cards with his family, which included his step-mother's blind brother. We played with Braille cards and if he dealt a showdown, he knew who had what and kept track of the table --- his mind was amazing.
But he often commented about playing with friends (not family), about how he couldn't keep track of his money. We played with nickels and dimes, which he knew by hand, but eventually he might need change, which involved bills and there he was at a disadvantage. I knew that he ordered his wallet then, trying to keep track. And I know he suspected someone of taking advantage of him. So, I imagine having one bill marked would be of immense help.
13
Our money doesn't make sense.
Washington ($1),the "father" of our country, fine (but not on $1 and on the quarter).
Lincoln ($5) the emancipator of the slaves and the man who saved the Union, fine (although most white southerners would like to see the leader of the "War of Northern Aggression" replaced).
Franklin ($100) was actually an intellectual. Odd that we Americans would honor such a person, but fine.
But Hamilton ($10) was a key federalist; that's not good enough to be on money.
The illiterate Jackson ($20) was mainly a British and then Indian fighter; not particularly notable.
Grant ($50) was Lincoln's general. But they represent the same era and conflict, and Grant was a terrible president.
Frederick Douglas is another possible great figure of US history.
How about Sacajawea on a bill? (being on a $1 coin still doesn't count for much since most Americans still don't like $1 coins).
Sadly, we can put a woman on money. But most Americans, not just conservatives, simply don't recognize ANY woman as having been a great contributor to our country.
Washington ($1),the "father" of our country, fine (but not on $1 and on the quarter).
Lincoln ($5) the emancipator of the slaves and the man who saved the Union, fine (although most white southerners would like to see the leader of the "War of Northern Aggression" replaced).
Franklin ($100) was actually an intellectual. Odd that we Americans would honor such a person, but fine.
But Hamilton ($10) was a key federalist; that's not good enough to be on money.
The illiterate Jackson ($20) was mainly a British and then Indian fighter; not particularly notable.
Grant ($50) was Lincoln's general. But they represent the same era and conflict, and Grant was a terrible president.
Frederick Douglas is another possible great figure of US history.
How about Sacajawea on a bill? (being on a $1 coin still doesn't count for much since most Americans still don't like $1 coins).
Sadly, we can put a woman on money. But most Americans, not just conservatives, simply don't recognize ANY woman as having been a great contributor to our country.
76
Yes, Sacajawea -- a near-perfect antidote to Jackson!
Why is it wrong that we honor an intellectual like Benjamin Franklin? That right there says a lot about your attitude toward thinking people. Besides, if we take him off, it won't be all about the Benjamins anymore.
Jon Davis: "Sadly, we can put a woman on money (Sadly????). But most Americans, not just conservatives, simply don't recognize ANY woman as having been a great contributor to our country." But even more tragically, we can all think of MANY men who have been a great contributor to the decline of the country - think GW Bush, CJ John Roberts, LB Johnson, RM Nixon, R Reagan -see I could even find a Democrat who did harm! But when you think of all the great men who were great contributors to the country, they all had Mothers - maybe you would allow one of them to grace your money.
EW
EW
Mickey Mouse. Beloved by my generation, and my grandchildren.
9
How about a real animal, instead of an already over-commercialized one?
The endangered sage grouse, anyone?
The endangered sage grouse, anyone?
Or Congress
Just so long as It's not Hilary.
I think giving her a billion dollars to run her campaign, and the 'inevitable' Democratic nomination for President is enough for this year.
I think giving her a billion dollars to run her campaign, and the 'inevitable' Democratic nomination for President is enough for this year.
4
Actually it has to be someone deceased, which, you may notice, Hillary is not.
"Jane Austen is about to supplant Charles Darwin on the £10 note."
This pounds home the point that the British are evolving.
This pounds home the point that the British are evolving.
101
The British have had a woman as their country's leader, something we still haven't done.
Other than the fact, of course, that they don't have the same problems with security, counterfeiting & being one of the two de facto world currencies to deal with. ;)
Gale:
If we begin now maybe by the time a woman is on one of our bills, women will be paid the same as men. For now it's perfectly fitting that men rule the money with their portraits, when they rule the money by being paid more on average than a women.
Alan
If we begin now maybe by the time a woman is on one of our bills, women will be paid the same as men. For now it's perfectly fitting that men rule the money with their portraits, when they rule the money by being paid more on average than a women.
Alan
58
I can imagine those of a "conservative" persuasion hating the idea of
a black person looking out at them on our currency.
a black person looking out at them on our currency.
38
LOL. I am sorry to say I know more then a few people that would not even carry a $20 bill if an African American face is on it. Thank god racism is dead. Another LOL to that one.
To my colored black mind Ivy Baker Priest sounded like a typical "black" Southern name. How could I have missed this black "first"? Well she was a white Mormon from Utah. Azie Taylor Morton was the first and only black woman to become U.S. Treasurer. Quite a few Hispanic Latino women have held this "ladies" job.
But back to who should replace the white supremacist misogynist bigot slave master and native American killer Andrew Jackson on the $ 20 bill.
In honor of my brown Cherokee heritage I still suggest the Great Warrior of Chota and a Beloved Man of the Cherokee Ocononstota the last great war chief of the Cherokee nation who led his people fighting against America.
In honor of my white European heritage I strongly favor John Brown.
My colored black heritage is fine with either Harriet Tubman or Sojourner Truth.
But back to who should replace the white supremacist misogynist bigot slave master and native American killer Andrew Jackson on the $ 20 bill.
In honor of my brown Cherokee heritage I still suggest the Great Warrior of Chota and a Beloved Man of the Cherokee Ocononstota the last great war chief of the Cherokee nation who led his people fighting against America.
In honor of my white European heritage I strongly favor John Brown.
My colored black heritage is fine with either Harriet Tubman or Sojourner Truth.
44
Seems like no one who is white will satisfy you.
1
I have an Ivy Baker Priest story that was an epiphany moment and woke me up to gender discrimination. I was about 10 years old in the 1950s and was scrutinizing a dollar bill, saw Ivy Baker Priest's signature on the bill, and asked my mother who was Ivy Baker Priest? I remember saying, "Is she a president? Is she a priest?"
Mom, who used to work in the FDR administration, knew a lot about politics, government, literature, and history (unfortunately, no college degree for Mom since her Irish-immigrant father died suddenly in her freshman year at GW, and she had to go to work to help support her mother and much younger brothers). Mom was an avid reader, knew an amazing amount of D.C. gossip about our politicians, and was my go-to source for questions about any of the areas mentioned above; plus she was half Irish, so could really tell a great story.
Mom told me all about Ivy being the U.S. Treasurer, who had been appointed by President Eisenhower and what an interesting woman she was--and she is (see http://historytogo.utah.gov/people/utahns_of_achievement/ivybakerpriest..... Mom characterized her as the kind of woman who gets the job done without a lot of male preening and fuss.
I asked Mom if Ivy could be President. Mom said "No," and told me why. I asked if Ivy was a priest, though admittedly I had never seen a woman priest at mass. Mom said "No," and told me why.
From that moment on, I asked, "Why not?"
Mom, who used to work in the FDR administration, knew a lot about politics, government, literature, and history (unfortunately, no college degree for Mom since her Irish-immigrant father died suddenly in her freshman year at GW, and she had to go to work to help support her mother and much younger brothers). Mom was an avid reader, knew an amazing amount of D.C. gossip about our politicians, and was my go-to source for questions about any of the areas mentioned above; plus she was half Irish, so could really tell a great story.
Mom told me all about Ivy being the U.S. Treasurer, who had been appointed by President Eisenhower and what an interesting woman she was--and she is (see http://historytogo.utah.gov/people/utahns_of_achievement/ivybakerpriest..... Mom characterized her as the kind of woman who gets the job done without a lot of male preening and fuss.
I asked Mom if Ivy could be President. Mom said "No," and told me why. I asked if Ivy was a priest, though admittedly I had never seen a woman priest at mass. Mom said "No," and told me why.
From that moment on, I asked, "Why not?"
291
Ivy's daughter, Pat Priest, was an attractive blonde actress, and had a recurring role as Marilyn Munster of the TV Munster family, a family of 1930s style horror film characters. Pat was the only normal appearing member of the family. The running joke was that, by appearing normal, she was "ugly" by Munster family standards.
6
Wait, if you tell me you grew up to be Robert Kennedy, someone here can just knock me over with a feather!
Just kidding! (Thanks for the links. )
Just kidding! (Thanks for the links. )
Too bad we can't take all this energy being put into who's on the bills and instead put it into who's getting the bills.
61
As Gail said, we can go for both.
Time to honor someone who saved rather than killed her fellow human beings. Jackson was a an of his time to whom we as a nation owe much but not all. If not Tubman why not the man with the largest tub, William Howard Taft? A good man who had a major problem with size, much like the government all currency is reflective of.
You mean to tell me that a country that can put a couple of guys on the Moon and send spacecraft to the far reaches of the solar system can't put a woman on the $20 bill without a multi-decade study?
What utter nonsense.
We are in far worse shape than I imagined.
What utter nonsense.
We are in far worse shape than I imagined.
329
Our national values are reflected in our currency. The guess here is that money is one thing and the face on a bill (or a profile etched on a coin) is of far less worth than the culture(s) underlying American history. The institution of slavery was the awful foundation for much of America's economy through the middle of the 19th century. Can anyone think for a moment that a great percentage of Americans desire to hide the fact that an evil system supported their patriotism? Think of the current Congress and ask yourself if the House and Senate want that kind of change, no pun intended. Harriet Tubman? Excellent choice, but why stop there? Eleanor Roosevelt; Sojourner Truth; Sandra Day O'Connor. This country was not founded by men only; that's a falsehood that men have nurtured (excuse the expression!) for way too long. As usual, other countries get it right; they decide and, voila! done! America requires snail-pace committees to show the world that we're different, serious, not frivolous. Change, please!
16
Our government seems to have been designed to make it hard to get anything done. I'm not sure that was a good idea unless, like the conservatives, you don't want to get anything done.
26
I vote for a dual portrait of Harriett Tubman and Frederick Douglass.
6
Read *Douglass' Women* by Rhodes about how he treated his black wife while having affairs with white women.
OK, so no one is perfect, but this is a bad combination.
OK, so no one is perfect, but this is a bad combination.
Soon enough we'll all be using Apple Pay anyway. And, after all, Eve did present the first apple, didn't she? So, in that sense, the "new money" will have originated from woman. Problem solved! No guys, just fruit! Sweet!
2
Oh yes, "more study is needed." Research needs to be done. If we wanted to mobilize on this, I am guessing we could. We could vote to give the government entities involved fast-tracking authority, for example.
14
But given the highly polarized nature of current politics & the downstream from gerrymandering in many states, the question to ask is, "Do we really want that?"
Or to put the question into fewer & stronger word, "Scott Walker?"
Yes, precisely. In cases like this I'd much rather have deliberate action instead of warp-speed.
Or to put the question into fewer & stronger word, "Scott Walker?"
Yes, precisely. In cases like this I'd much rather have deliberate action instead of warp-speed.
Best? to let sleeping dogs lie. If Jackson goes, then eventually so will Tubman, then her successor (not to mention George, Abe, etc), ad infinitum.
Alternatively, enable multiple portraits (say, perhaps, ten) per denomination, keeping the rest of that bill the same. An engineering challenge, but do-able.
Alternatively, enable multiple portraits (say, perhaps, ten) per denomination, keeping the rest of that bill the same. An engineering challenge, but do-able.
5
In the time-honored tradition of never really making up our minds, why don't we put one of those tricky images that show one face when viewed a certain way and a different one when turned to the side? Imagine TR becoming ER or John Adams becoming Abigail. Or maybe Elvis fading to Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash to June Carter. Or two women: Amelia Earhart to Sally Ride, Harriet Tubman to Rosa Parks. Just the debate on who to combine with whom could generate years of fun!
64
America is pushing the levers, turning the gears, slowly...yielding misogynist fears.
Appears we are still using the Gutenberg press! How about advancing the technology and process, and while we're at it, let's elect more women to all levels of government.
Tubman, who risked her life to save lives, is a great choice to replace a slave holder who risked his life in duels to settle arguments. I prefer Tubman's values.
Appears we are still using the Gutenberg press! How about advancing the technology and process, and while we're at it, let's elect more women to all levels of government.
Tubman, who risked her life to save lives, is a great choice to replace a slave holder who risked his life in duels to settle arguments. I prefer Tubman's values.
125
Dear Ms. Collins,
Since the bulk of the population, the 99%, so to speak, seldom SEE much of this stuff of what you write (Money? What's THAT!), perhaps the portrait of whoever is on the 'money' should be sold to the highest bidder?
Two positives from this:
a. The wealthy could be so caught up in the 'bidding wars' that much of their money will go toward that instead of buying politicians
b. The money raised could be used for something other than useless, time consuming, money consuming (Time is money, isn't it?) 'debates' about the 'issue' of "what gender is on the twenty". This might 'free' our politicians up to discuss something else like poverty, discrimination,police brutality, etc.
If having one of the Koch Brothers on the 20 dollar bill doesn't appeal, maybe the bill should feature something 'genderless' (With "Star Wars" coming back, maybe an R2-D2 would satisfy everyone, don't you think?).
But in the 'spirit' of this discussion, I'd like to recommend myself as the replacement figure on the 20 dollar bill.
My 'credentials' for such an honor are:
a. I've never run for office hence
b. I've not been 'corrupted' by the system and
c. I'm 'unaffiliated' (Independent voter is so yesterday) and so appealing to both Dems. and Republicans!
I must admit my gender is 'male' but, if necessary, I'd wear a dress for the portrait (Gotta keep everyone happy!).
So, folks, start the 'write in' campaign today!
Since the bulk of the population, the 99%, so to speak, seldom SEE much of this stuff of what you write (Money? What's THAT!), perhaps the portrait of whoever is on the 'money' should be sold to the highest bidder?
Two positives from this:
a. The wealthy could be so caught up in the 'bidding wars' that much of their money will go toward that instead of buying politicians
b. The money raised could be used for something other than useless, time consuming, money consuming (Time is money, isn't it?) 'debates' about the 'issue' of "what gender is on the twenty". This might 'free' our politicians up to discuss something else like poverty, discrimination,police brutality, etc.
If having one of the Koch Brothers on the 20 dollar bill doesn't appeal, maybe the bill should feature something 'genderless' (With "Star Wars" coming back, maybe an R2-D2 would satisfy everyone, don't you think?).
But in the 'spirit' of this discussion, I'd like to recommend myself as the replacement figure on the 20 dollar bill.
My 'credentials' for such an honor are:
a. I've never run for office hence
b. I've not been 'corrupted' by the system and
c. I'm 'unaffiliated' (Independent voter is so yesterday) and so appealing to both Dems. and Republicans!
I must admit my gender is 'male' but, if necessary, I'd wear a dress for the portrait (Gotta keep everyone happy!).
So, folks, start the 'write in' campaign today!
4
Richard,
If you are denigrating the Koch brothers you are not an Independent. Now if you'd said the Kochs and George Soros you'd have qualified for an "I".
If you are denigrating the Koch brothers you are not an Independent. Now if you'd said the Kochs and George Soros you'd have qualified for an "I".
If R2-D2 were to appear wouldn't that lead to the conclusion that Android won the competition, and Google was in charge? Why not get Google to pay for it?
1
Great comments. Good points and made me laugh!
1
This strikes me as just more thing we will feel compelled to argue about. I have never felt for a second that anyone's portrait on any bill honors that person. The picture is just...there. I guess I'm just tired of everyone arguing about everything.
13
I vote for changing all the portraits on paper currency. As long as you're replacing Andrew Jackson, replace all of them. So many viable candidates have been proposed, why not honor them all? The process is, what the process is and a few extra here and there won't slow it down.
If male portraits have dominated, let's give the other gender a roll, for a few centuries at least. If we're talking gender equality, it is only fitting. And while women may just want to get their "hands on the money," I'd posit that for these same centuries, many a woman has saved the family budget by doing just that.
It's high time women came of age in graphics, as well as laws. Progress demands equal face time. Women are known to be more cautious than men when it comes to the power of the purse. Given the antics on Wall Street yesterday, with so many big firms indicted of high crimes in currency manipulation, wouldn't we all feel safer with historically prominent women staring us in the face as we pull out bills from our wallets?
If male portraits have dominated, let's give the other gender a roll, for a few centuries at least. If we're talking gender equality, it is only fitting. And while women may just want to get their "hands on the money," I'd posit that for these same centuries, many a woman has saved the family budget by doing just that.
It's high time women came of age in graphics, as well as laws. Progress demands equal face time. Women are known to be more cautious than men when it comes to the power of the purse. Given the antics on Wall Street yesterday, with so many big firms indicted of high crimes in currency manipulation, wouldn't we all feel safer with historically prominent women staring us in the face as we pull out bills from our wallets?
67
To answer your question, no.
6
A minor point in the article was the mention of a tactile feature to enable the blind to identify a $10 bill. In Britain this was solved a long long time ago. All the different denominations of the £ note are different sizes. The blind can place the edge of the bill in the join between the thumb and first finger and feel how far it reaches along the first finger.
23
Forget the people...put trees and mountains and amber waves of grain. As a woman I can think of nothing more unpleasant than to have my face on money and be passed around from hand to hand. Who would want to be associated with the various negative uses of currency: drugs, wars, corruption, gambling, et al? After all associated with greed and poverty I do not feel having a woman's face on currency would be an honor.
13
PS. Don't put a woman's face on money: Give her equal pay.
3
ok, how about heidi fleiss ?
2
The problem with having Tom Brady on the twenty dollar bill is obvious. Deflationary currency.
296
You left out Freedom Fries
2
I suggest Bill Clinton for one of your notes. A ten dollar Bill?
2
How about MLK, Jr., for the $20 bill?
I think all of you moralists have it wrong, Sally Hemings works fine for me.
5
A woman on the $20 is a great idea, but the number voting was so small, it is hard to believe that Harriet Tubman is the consensus pick of voters nationwide. I voted in Phase One, but did not reliably receive e-mails for follow up voters, as the sponsors promised.
2
Whenever I tell my foreign friends the story of Harriet Tubman, they are astonished. How could an *American* take on such enormous risk for such enormous selflessness, they ask. How does an *American* manage to look past their own reflection for five minutes?
Nonsense, I tell them. We have it all. That's what makes our country so great.
Nonsense, I tell them. We have it all. That's what makes our country so great.
70
The U.S. Government has a poor track record with real women (the Liberty dollar and Walking Liberty half-dollar therefore excepted) and currency.
The excitement around the Susan B. Anthony dollar quickly turned to confusion when the coin was issued at basically the size of a quarter - so obviously "devalued" from the outset that it was relegated primarily, and rather briefly it seemed, to use with vending machines. Similarly Sacagawea.
Telling.
Yes to swapping Harriet for Andrew on the $20 - and let's do it soon whilst paper money is still in common circulation.
The excitement around the Susan B. Anthony dollar quickly turned to confusion when the coin was issued at basically the size of a quarter - so obviously "devalued" from the outset that it was relegated primarily, and rather briefly it seemed, to use with vending machines. Similarly Sacagawea.
Telling.
Yes to swapping Harriet for Andrew on the $20 - and let's do it soon whilst paper money is still in common circulation.
159
There would be no United States without Jackson, but if change is inevitable I vote for TR.
6
Just as long as it isn't a woman? Just askin'.
19
Teddy Roosevelt's greatness was an illusion constructed by his own creative public relations efforts.
3
You have to realize, he followed the Capitalist tool McKinley. We could use a Trust Buster today. "Too big to fail" should be "Too big to exist".
14
Best idea sense sliced bread and trolley cars. Andrew Jackson was indeed a successful president mostly by expanding American Land but also by creating "Jacksonian Democracy", regarding how governments might work. Maybe, we might move Jackson to a fifteen dollar bill and give the twenty to Tubman. Imagine the new slogans and snide jokes that would evolve around that eventuality especially considering that Jackson understood that slavery would cause the Nation to crumble into crazies asking for war but could not figure out a means nor method to align the Nation.
3
This is a classic Gail Collins motivational column. If one reads this and isn't charged up to go out and do good for the fellow citizen then you probably sit around singing songs about the south land and wistfully wish for those good ole days of the 1850's. Old Hickory is a classic man of his time. Own or kill anything that wasn't his tribe. But let us not forget, he was willing to co opt native americans to help him defend New Orleans. Talk about pragmatism/stabbing someone in the back. His war on Bank of US I and II was probably a righteous cause but done for the wrong reasons. But I digress, the Tubman $20 is an issue whose time is on its sixth overtime. Let's just do it.(Am I in trouble for copywrite violation?)
55
Placing a woman on the $20 bill is fine. As for the overseas US currency hoarders, they mostly prefer $100 bills.
While Americans cherish paper money and have eschewed $1 coins, its rather ridiculous to have short lived paper currency with so little purchasing power. We should take Canada's lead and eliminate paper currency in values under $5. And do away with the 1 cent piece. It costs more to make than it is worth. Its been done before. Half cents were once minted, but no longer.
We should have George Washington on the $1 coin, for continuity with the eliminated paper dollar, but honor Theodore Roosevelt on a new $2 coin. Eliminate the $2 bill, which is not widely circulated, and is viewed as an oddity.
With the wide adoption of electronic payment systems and credit cards for even minor transactions, I find my use of legal tender currency has fallen off tremendously. Seems that cash is now mostly used for "off the books" transactions. Some of which are nefarious.
While Americans cherish paper money and have eschewed $1 coins, its rather ridiculous to have short lived paper currency with so little purchasing power. We should take Canada's lead and eliminate paper currency in values under $5. And do away with the 1 cent piece. It costs more to make than it is worth. Its been done before. Half cents were once minted, but no longer.
We should have George Washington on the $1 coin, for continuity with the eliminated paper dollar, but honor Theodore Roosevelt on a new $2 coin. Eliminate the $2 bill, which is not widely circulated, and is viewed as an oddity.
With the wide adoption of electronic payment systems and credit cards for even minor transactions, I find my use of legal tender currency has fallen off tremendously. Seems that cash is now mostly used for "off the books" transactions. Some of which are nefarious.
35
Then how does one leave a 3 dollar or six dollar tip? I think one's are still essential although I could do without pennies.
2
Loonies and Toonies!
4
Good point about the paper and Canada's example. Look ahead and recognize the penny will be obsoleted some day followed by the nickel. Lincoln is already on the $5 so losing the penny is no problem, but losing Jefferson would be a travesty. Move Jefferson to the quarter, put Tubman on the $20, and move Jackson on the nickel. Let the passing of time remove Jackson. If you want to put TR on a new $2 coin then great.
3
So Harriet Tubman won? Interesting. Nice contrast to Jackson. I thought Eleanor Roosevelt was going to win. But hey, I'm often wrong when it comes to predicting votes. I thought Reagan and Bush Jr were both sure losers.
Anyway, it seems that I have several variations of currency in my wallet right now. Look at your own wallet. Changing just the portrait alone would be easier than a whole redesign. And look at all the coins that are redesigned...
I suspect the protestations from Treasury are just excuses. As usual, women and the blind are not valued that much so we are put on hold...
Anyway, it seems that I have several variations of currency in my wallet right now. Look at your own wallet. Changing just the portrait alone would be easier than a whole redesign. And look at all the coins that are redesigned...
I suspect the protestations from Treasury are just excuses. As usual, women and the blind are not valued that much so we are put on hold...
203
"Slave-owner who came to national renown as an Indian-killer." Actually sounds like George Washington -- who was a slave-owner whose first opportunity to become known to his future countrymen was as a young Virginia Militia officer in the French and Indian War.
Careful of whom you demonize, Gail: even Democrats today, while pointing out Washington's unfortunate dependency on a plantation full of slaves, would suffer in the minds of their OWN countrymen by lambasting too energetically the Father of Our Country.
I'd vote for Harriet Tubman over Ol' Hickory on the $20 bill. But we might also consider Hillary, who, while not dead (usually a requirement), likely would consider the honor an appropriate consolation after 20 Jan., 2017.
Careful of whom you demonize, Gail: even Democrats today, while pointing out Washington's unfortunate dependency on a plantation full of slaves, would suffer in the minds of their OWN countrymen by lambasting too energetically the Father of Our Country.
I'd vote for Harriet Tubman over Ol' Hickory on the $20 bill. But we might also consider Hillary, who, while not dead (usually a requirement), likely would consider the honor an appropriate consolation after 20 Jan., 2017.
1
My recollection is that Washington eventually freed his slaves, and also made treaties with an honest effort to protect Native Americans and their lands. The problem Washington faced with the treaties was the difficulty, without a standing army, of preventing white settlers from taking up residence on Indian lands, which they did in vast numbers.
Jackson was an entirely different story. His attitude toward Native Americans was near-genocidal, and to his death he remained a staunch supporter of human slavery.
Jackson was an entirely different story. His attitude toward Native Americans was near-genocidal, and to his death he remained a staunch supporter of human slavery.
27
Excellent response, Jim. Richard has never been concerned about facts as much as he is deflecting the conversation on to something else. Notice how he even managed to bring in Sec. Clinton when this piece had nothing at all to do with her.
And Richard - No that doesn't sound like George Washington AT ALL. An Indian killer? Nobody thinks that. He is not and never has been nationally renown as an Indian killer, the French and Indian War notwithstanding.
And Richard - No that doesn't sound like George Washington AT ALL. An Indian killer? Nobody thinks that. He is not and never has been nationally renown as an Indian killer, the French and Indian War notwithstanding.
5
Jim:
Washington freed the slaves that belonged to him at his death, but couldn't free those belonging to Martha, and they reverted to her estate on her death and were divided up among survivors.
However, Washington struggled with the institution of slavery all his life, yet was a major slaveholder. Jackson never had any qualms about slavery and also was a slaveholder. Despite the wretchedness of the institution, who was the more honest man?
As to Washington and Native Americans, you need to review your history. In common with many of his time, he considered them a vanishing people, that would eventually cease to exist in the United States: they would either die out, migrate, or become assimilated. He also gave orders to destroy Indian villages during the Revolutionary War as punishment for supposed aid to the British, and 40 villages were destroyed -- irrespective of whether the braves had assisted the British or were our allies. During his presidency, he was led by the more humane instincts of Henry Knox in his dealings with the Nations, rather than harboring any particular love or respect for them.
And, disappointingly, you wrote nothing on my observations on the Hillster.
Washington freed the slaves that belonged to him at his death, but couldn't free those belonging to Martha, and they reverted to her estate on her death and were divided up among survivors.
However, Washington struggled with the institution of slavery all his life, yet was a major slaveholder. Jackson never had any qualms about slavery and also was a slaveholder. Despite the wretchedness of the institution, who was the more honest man?
As to Washington and Native Americans, you need to review your history. In common with many of his time, he considered them a vanishing people, that would eventually cease to exist in the United States: they would either die out, migrate, or become assimilated. He also gave orders to destroy Indian villages during the Revolutionary War as punishment for supposed aid to the British, and 40 villages were destroyed -- irrespective of whether the braves had assisted the British or were our allies. During his presidency, he was led by the more humane instincts of Henry Knox in his dealings with the Nations, rather than harboring any particular love or respect for them.
And, disappointingly, you wrote nothing on my observations on the Hillster.
Will the Republicans allow a black female slave to appear on holy moolah? I don't think so.
233
And wait! If it does happen (the Tubman twenty)...it'll be nanoseconds before it's called "n-dollars" by certain folk I'm ashamed to say.
3
Problem solved, if they refuse to use it.
1
Isn't Sarah Palin already on the #3.00 bill?
4
I would be curious to know what the government estimates the cost would be to change the picture on our currency. I am not opposed to changing the person on a bill - male or female. I would agree with a prior comment, could the money be spent on something more worthwhile. I'm not sure many Americans even think about the individuals on our bills very often. While I'm not proud of how our country developed - the genocide of the American Indian, and the enslavement of Africans, I understand why it occurred. Slavery, though originally adopted for economic reasons, eventually was justified by whites on the basis of race. Whites concluded that extermination of Indians and enslavement of Africans was logical in that whites were civilized and others were barbaric. Legal codes gradually made racism the official policy of the colonial governments. A few examples: It was made a crime for a slave to insult any white, regardless of position. Slave owners were allowed to punish, maim, or even kill slaves. Those were different times – times we must never forget. Back to the bills – my opinion, I would like to see Harriet Tubman replace Andy Jackson. While I have no issues with President Jackson, it might be good to remind all Americans of our country’s racially divided history and replace him with Ms. Tubman.
7
@Objective Opinion of NYC, who says, "I would agree with a prior comment, could the money be spent on something more worthwhile."
It grieves me to think of the money spent--wasted--on the Bush Wars and their cascading, continuing consequences. The cost of putting Harriet Tubman on the twenty is miniscule in comparison, and the benefit to society, while essentially symbolic, would be to uplift the image of both women and African Americans and remind us of the ideals to which we as a nation aspire.
It grieves me to think of the money spent--wasted--on the Bush Wars and their cascading, continuing consequences. The cost of putting Harriet Tubman on the twenty is miniscule in comparison, and the benefit to society, while essentially symbolic, would be to uplift the image of both women and African Americans and remind us of the ideals to which we as a nation aspire.
9
Using the dollar's global currency status to argue against changing it is a red herring.
In the early 90's I went to visit the ex, who was teaching English to rich Turkish kids. Half the hundred dollar bills I got from the bank were the new, blown up faces ones.
The Turkish money changers didn't bat an eye.
In the early 90's I went to visit the ex, who was teaching English to rich Turkish kids. Half the hundred dollar bills I got from the bank were the new, blown up faces ones.
The Turkish money changers didn't bat an eye.
29
My overseas experience is that foreign money hoarders prefer the latest issue currency available. I was in Israel a few years ago, got to know a taxi driver quite well, and he was anxious to exchange his hoarded old small portrait currency for the latest, large portrait series bills. I think they fear that older currency will be declared no longer valid as legal tender, and therefore do not want to get "stuck" with it if the US Treasury should ever do so in the future. I believe something like half the outstanding US currency is outside the United States.
12
R.M.:
Unlike Gail's mother, not many are using paper currency to inspire their daughters. (They have computers, books, games, camps, etc etc. You should have kept reading.)
You Boomers are idealistic though. Thinking that young mothers of today will transmit your Harriet Tubman lessons because Gail's mother once showed her daughter something symbolic on a dollar bill...
How better could the money be spent today, rather than on symbolic money design? Do you even care about the young girls and women of today, and do you perhaps think that this superfluous currency change will not be worth the paper it is printed on, so to speak?
Don't slander Jackson either. We don't have to pit this generation against that. Wait... soon they'll be coming for George Washington.
Unlike Gail's mother, not many are using paper currency to inspire their daughters. (They have computers, books, games, camps, etc etc. You should have kept reading.)
You Boomers are idealistic though. Thinking that young mothers of today will transmit your Harriet Tubman lessons because Gail's mother once showed her daughter something symbolic on a dollar bill...
How better could the money be spent today, rather than on symbolic money design? Do you even care about the young girls and women of today, and do you perhaps think that this superfluous currency change will not be worth the paper it is printed on, so to speak?
Don't slander Jackson either. We don't have to pit this generation against that. Wait... soon they'll be coming for George Washington.
2
Why is there this rush to retire Andrew Jackson from the $20.00??? Jackson is the only Democratic president who appears on our money. I guess it doesn't matter that American forces under then General Jackson prevented the British from seizing New Orleans during the War of 1812 or that he challenged the growing power of the banking industry while he was president. Jackson was truly the people's president--he opened up the White House to ordinary citizens after he was sworn in. True, the White House was trashed, but a good time was had by all. Democrats just don't get a break do they???
19
Woodrow Wilson was also a Democrat. But then, I haven't actually had hands on a 100K bill.
23
That's true. She's a little hard on him. On the other hand, FDR and JFK do appear on our money. Just not on paper money.
6
What he did to Native Americans is unconscionable. Have you heard of "The Trail of Tears"? The beginning of a long list.
19
It can't take that long. Slenderize the process, get the ball moving, push it through. They must have a template for all these security gizmos. Just change the picture. And Harriet Tubman is simply the ideal switch.
78
I would have edited out the bit about your mother showing you the currency, and you having an epiphany that a person of your gender could be in a position of authority. That actually works against the Tubman replacement.
What mother will inspire her daughter with a tucked $20 and a whisper, "You too can be a runaway slave, and then help others escape one day too, dear!" Unless, on rethink, you are going out deeper here than I originally thought. Hail, Mary!
Seriously, I won't be hurt if we don't do the symbolic redesign. Honestly, there's so many more places nowadays than in the 50s for children to get information and inspiration. More books, periodicals, games, toys, just more things period. The higher class you go, the less you touch paper money anyway, so it really doesn't have the daily importance of symbol even.
And the cost to redesign, w/the security measures as you note, well let's just say that most women too know the value of thrift and other ways to better spend that money to invest in young women's success today.
Finally, and please hear me out: in the whole, Andrew Jackson of Jacksonian democracy was not that bad a leader for the working people and non-elites. Learn more about him, even if you can't forgive his Indian-fighting role/Trail of Tears and slave-owning. It IS more complex than just painting him as an evil white man, when you understand the choices in context.
One day, people will look back on our inherited disparities and see evil too.
What mother will inspire her daughter with a tucked $20 and a whisper, "You too can be a runaway slave, and then help others escape one day too, dear!" Unless, on rethink, you are going out deeper here than I originally thought. Hail, Mary!
Seriously, I won't be hurt if we don't do the symbolic redesign. Honestly, there's so many more places nowadays than in the 50s for children to get information and inspiration. More books, periodicals, games, toys, just more things period. The higher class you go, the less you touch paper money anyway, so it really doesn't have the daily importance of symbol even.
And the cost to redesign, w/the security measures as you note, well let's just say that most women too know the value of thrift and other ways to better spend that money to invest in young women's success today.
Finally, and please hear me out: in the whole, Andrew Jackson of Jacksonian democracy was not that bad a leader for the working people and non-elites. Learn more about him, even if you can't forgive his Indian-fighting role/Trail of Tears and slave-owning. It IS more complex than just painting him as an evil white man, when you understand the choices in context.
One day, people will look back on our inherited disparities and see evil too.
6
I loved the part about her mother, and Ivy Baker Priest, whose signature I remember from my childhood.
49
Harriet Tubman was born a slave. She was listed as property. She was viciously abused. She was denied education, healthcare and any human dignity whatsoever.
This game-changing woman put everything on the line including her life to change not only her life but the others around her..again and again. She a true American and patriot.
In America today women face challenges, nothing like what Harriet faced, but nevertheless, real and pertinent issues such as domestic violence, lack of equal pay (in 2015!!!), access to reproductive health, etc.
The moral that any mother can tell her daughter while looking at Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill is that her daughter can overcome challenges and become a transformational leader to make the world a better place.
This game-changing woman put everything on the line including her life to change not only her life but the others around her..again and again. She a true American and patriot.
In America today women face challenges, nothing like what Harriet faced, but nevertheless, real and pertinent issues such as domestic violence, lack of equal pay (in 2015!!!), access to reproductive health, etc.
The moral that any mother can tell her daughter while looking at Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill is that her daughter can overcome challenges and become a transformational leader to make the world a better place.
117
@Midway of Midwest--Collins's anecdote about her mother pointing out the woman's name on the currency was *not* superfluous; why dismiss her epiphany as insignificant? And I'll bet her mother wouldn't have whispered about how Gail, too, could be a runaway slave; more likely she would simply have told her daughter what a courageous woman Harriet Tubman was.
I'm old enough to remember the names of Ivy Baker Priest and Georgia Neese Clark, her immediate predecessor, the first female Treasurer, who was appointed by President Truman. Women elected or appointed to office were few and far between before the War. We've seen considerable progress in that regard since then, but women are still regarded by some as "less." One has to wonder why you not only dismiss Gail's memory as unimportant but denigrate the whole idea of Tubman on the twenty.
I'm old enough to remember the names of Ivy Baker Priest and Georgia Neese Clark, her immediate predecessor, the first female Treasurer, who was appointed by President Truman. Women elected or appointed to office were few and far between before the War. We've seen considerable progress in that regard since then, but women are still regarded by some as "less." One has to wonder why you not only dismiss Gail's memory as unimportant but denigrate the whole idea of Tubman on the twenty.
21
Now Jackson I dislike, don't hate,
But Harriet T. altered Fate
A beacon of light
In the Underground fight,
Her face on a Twenty? Just great!
The Twenty would be gratified
To have Harriet on one side,
So get the ball rolling,
Harriet extolling,
A Twenty we can hold with pride!
But Harriet T. altered Fate
A beacon of light
In the Underground fight,
Her face on a Twenty? Just great!
The Twenty would be gratified
To have Harriet on one side,
So get the ball rolling,
Harriet extolling,
A Twenty we can hold with pride!
232
It’s just so much easier to figure out currency in other countries by touch!
Now re: Ms. Priest. I got my college degrees and post grad degrees at the University of Utah so we all knew about Ivy Baker Priest. Ms. Priest was a daughter of Salt Lake City. She became a powerful Republican who co-chaired the Young Republicans in the Western States. She became a delegate and managed to get the GOP delegation to switch from Robert Taft to Dwight Eisenhower in the 1952 campign!
But what I remember most was that her daughter was the blonde “wanna be" Marilyn Monroe actress Pat Priest who played the ”normal” cousin on “The Munsters” TV show.
In our “star-studded” society it was “Wow--the daughter of the woman whose name is on our currency is Pat Priest’s mother!”