Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew has an announcement about the monies.
Since we began this process, we have heard overwhelming encouragement from Americans to look at notes beyond the $10. Based on this input, I have directed the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to accelerate plans for the redesign of the $20, $10, and $5 notes. We already have begun work on initial concepts for each note, which will continue this year. We anticipate that final concept designs for the new $20, $10, and $5 notes will all be unveiled in 2020 in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote.
The decision to put Harriet Tubman on the new $20 was driven by thousands of responses we received from Americans young and old. I have been particularly struck by the many comments and reactions from children for whom Harriet Tubman is not just a historical figure, but a role model for leadership and participation in our democracy. You shared your thoughts about her life and her works and how they changed our nation and represented our most cherished values.
Looking back on her life, Tubman once said, “I would fight for liberty so long as my strength lasted.” And she did fight, for the freedom of slaves and for the right of women to vote. Her incredible story of courage and commitment to equality embodies the ideals of democracy that our nation celebrates, and we will continue to value her legacy by honoring her on our currency. The reverse of the new $20 will continue to feature the White House as well as an image of President Andrew Jackson.
As I said when we launched this exciting project: after more than 100 years, we cannot delay, so the next bill to be redesigned must include women, who for too long have been absent from our currency. The new $10 will honor the story and the heroes of the women’s suffrage movement against the backdrop of the Treasury building. Treasury’s relationship with the suffrage movement dates back to the March of 1913, when advocates came together on the steps of the Treasury building to demonstrate for a woman’s right to vote, seven years prior to the passage of the 19th Amendment. The new $10 design will depict that historic march and honor Lucretia Mott, Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Alice Paul for their contributions to the suffrage movement. The front of the new $10 will continue to feature Alexander Hamilton, our nation’s first Treasury Secretary and the architect of our economic system.
The reverse of the new $5 will depict the historic events that have occurred at the Lincoln Memorial. In 1939, at a time when Washington’s concert halls were still segregated, world-renowned Opera singer Marian Anderson helped advance civil rights when, with the support of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, she performed at the Lincoln Memorial in front of 75,000 people. And in 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his historic “I Have a Dream” speech at the same monument in front of hundreds of thousands. Honoring these figures will bring to life events at the Lincoln Memorial that helped to shape our history and our democracy. The front of the new $5 will continue to feature President Lincoln.
If you ask me, this is all very cool, but there’s probably going to be a big cleanup in aisle twelve from all the wingnut heads exploding.
This must be the most conniving Kenyan socialist plot, yet!
A whole segment of American society is going to try to get through life without the twenty.
I’m not kidding.
.
Tubman, excellent!!! She was my top choice. Replacing bloody bloody Andrew Jackson with an African-American abolitionist is sweet.
Jackson had no business on a piece of script money. He was hard money guy.
I really love the conniving Kenyan socialist plots. Thanks, Obama and Lew!
I rold my wife today that I am not looking forward to my dad’s rants on this subject. He finally has the chance to publicly fly his bigot freak flag by yelling at cashiers, “I don’t want any of that n@$!erin money in my change”!!!
This is going to be something to witness.
Hope they give him his change in pennies, pointing out with each cent what the man on the penny did for the ‘n@$!erin’.
I’m just amused that the Treasury under the evil Kenyan Usurper is removing one of the founders of the Democratic party from our money, and putting on a woman who, had she been able to vote, would have been a staunch Republican.
Thanks, Obama!
And the republicans she could have voted for couldn’t have run in the modern GOtP,
Which party do ya think she would have sided with today?
The clueless bigoted party of the greedy rich, currently which has a politician for the white house leading by a loudmouth third rate hate filled bigoted facist or the other one?
I bet she wouldn’t go with the one teh donald is trying to win.
Good substitute for meaningful bank reform. Typical of the Obama administration. All symbolism, no meat.
If only we had McCain/Palin, or Rmoney/Ryan.
If only.
Well, there’s still the option of putting Sarah Palin on the three dollar bill.
The view of Russia from her porch could be on the reverse!
Lets go with Greta Van Susteren’s idea and make up a 13 dollar bill for the Wasilla Hill Billy.
I heard that you submitted a design that was not chosen. On the front is a wall labeled “USA” on one side and “Mexico” on the other. On the rear is some sort of legal-looking document with the words “deportation order” at the top.
Currency is on a schedule to get redesigned primarily for security purpose. not just in our country but in most countries with paper currency. as technology gets more sophisticated our currency needs to keep up. The $10 was next up and last year Secretary Lew announced a woman would be on it. Due to both the popularity of the Broadway show and the more importantly fact that Hamilton was founding father most responsible for our financial system there was an outcry against him being replaced.
People rightfully asked why not Jackson? Not only did he remove Native Americans against a supreme court decision he loathed the idea of fiat money.
At the same time there was discussion about which woman should go on the currency. Tubman was the most consensus choice. All of that led to Lew’s announcement yesterday. Hamilton would stay. Jackson would go to the back of the $20 and Tubman would don the front.
Still the point is they didn’t just do this for a symbolic gesture. The money was going to be redesigned anyway for security purposes.
Thanks, Obama.
Seriously, this is fantastic.
I’m not sure I can explain why, but I’m literally tearing up over this. Let’s get Frederick Douglass and Chief Joseph on the $50 and call it a wrap.
I think a Grant Douglas 50$ would be excellent.
Decent compromise, I have no objections
Well, my head exploded. Like Denzel said when the oscar went to Halle, “I get it, two birds in one night.”
So, the African-Americans and the women will be satisfied to see that we care deeply.
I’m wondering how many of us can recognize Harriet Tubman from this picture as not being Aunt Jemima. I would have preferred Rosa Parks who looked less like a slave.
Alice, um, the thing is, um, that she didn’t look like a slave. She was a slave.
So, I think it’s probably okay if she looks like one to some folks.
You know.
As a reminder.
Oh yeah, I sorta remember.
um, thanks for the reminder.
Looks like they’ve found a more respectful portrait to display on their website today.
It probably doesn’t matter. And while I have no objections, Tubman was a great woman, it doesn’t feel like an inspired decision to me.
You know what?
I.just.can’t.
I.just.can’t.
And to think, if she had joined John Brown’s raid, she might not have been remembered at all.
Tubbman was a remarkable person and deserves to be remembered.
I have no desire to weigh in on Jackson, who certainly was a highly problematic figure. I’ve studied Indian Removal a bit, and my impression is that while Jackson absolutely championed this cause, and it was apparently considered his signature legislation at the time, some form of Indian removal absolutely would have happened with or without him. It was being discussed I believe as early as 1815, if not earlier. More important, what amounted to ethnic cleansing was happening at the local level in a way the federal government was virtually powerless to stop. In other words, the crime of removal applies to basically the entire nation, it can’t be laid upon Jackson alone.
Before there was Lebensraum, there was Manifest Destiny.
And before them all there was Doctrine of Discovery. Which is still in effect in common law.
relegated to the “reverse” of Tubman’s twenty, while Hamilton hangs on to the “front” of the ten (like Lincoln on the five).
Interesting, given that Jackson’s reputation arrives at the present loaded down with, shall we say, considerable historical baggage, such that some people would have liked to see him gone from our currency altogether, and not without reason.
“all the wingnut heads exploding.” If only this was literally true our country could start healing itself…
The real modification we need is to change “In God We Trust” to “In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash”.
Not a big fan of either Hamilton or Jackson, but this seemed like a no-brainer, given the views each had on money and given that Jackson was a disgusting sub-human who should been burned in a trash can.
So, yes: Leave the monarchist tool on the currency, ditch the genocidal populist monster.
Politico — Carson: Maybe Tubman should go on the $2 bill
Seems like his aide left a few things out of the talking point about Jackson that he was handed before he want on the show. Wonder if he knows where $2 bills are most frequently in used today.
This guy! Oi vey es mir.
The only proper place for Jackson is on that trillion dollar coin they will be minting… lol
Too good for him. His likeness on US money should be restricted to being one of the $1 Presidential commemorative coins.. He got his in 2008, and if they remain popular and keep to the same schedule, he’ll be up again in two to three years.
I think maybe mino was going more for irony. It’s already pretty ironic that a president who hated fiat money is on the face of one of the most used fiat bills. I think it would be off the wall hilarious to put his face on a thin air one trillion dollar coin.
I like it. I think it’s worthwhile. Harriet Tubman was an amazing person.
Listening to rightwing bigots whine & vetch is icing on the cake.
Interesting tidbit from Jonathan Cohn:
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If Sanders wants that assignment, it wouldn’t be “in line for,” but his as one piece of any deal for his endorsement of HRC.
And, I love that they actually have pictures of Ms. Tubman from which to choose. And, none of them are ‘ happy’ – yes, I read that in a twitter feed – why couldn’t she look ‘ happy’.
MUTHAPHUCKA,PLEASE!
Maybe the engraver can tweak the corners of her mouth when they make the printing plates.
/sarcasm