For the past four months, every time I take cash out from my wallet I’m bound to stare into the face of Her Majesty Elizabeth II, the Queen of England. She’s printed on every note and is the face of the £1 coin.
On the back of these notes hold important figures, most men, but some are women. Elizabeth Fry, an English social reformer, is on the £5 note. When I first got here, I was mostly thrown off by the color and sizing of the money. They were all different shades and shapes and their coins actually had real worth exceeding 25 cents.
As I grew accustomed to the new colors (and frightening exchange rate), I began to notice something more. The British had women represented in their money more so than I had ever seen before in the United States.
In fact, when I came to think of (and later research) it, I found that the only time I remembered seeing a woman on U.S. money was on the dollar coin. Just so you know, Sacagawea graces the $1 coin.
Other cases where one may see women on U.S. money would be on commemorative coins (usually quarters). There has yet to be a woman who’s face appears on any U.S. bill and it’s the year 2015.
However, things may be changing. There’s currently a campaign going on run by the non-profit group “Women on 20s” and their sole purpose is to have a woman be the face of the $20 bill.
As of now, the twenty is plastered with the face of Andrew Jackson, America’s seventh president. Yes, he was an important figure who did run our country and help to make history, but he doesn’t have the best track record to be featured on the $20.
In case you didn’t pay attention to history class in high school, Jackson is responsible for the Trail of Tears. This is when thousands of Native Americans were driven from their homes in Southeastern United States to Oklahoma due to the Indian Removal Act of 1830.
Not only were they kicked off their land that they had inhabited for decades, thousands died from disease and starvation due to the treacherous journey.
If this wasn’t enough reason to have Jackson off the $20 bill, then you should also know that Jackson was never a fan of the central banking system. Instead he favored “hard money” such as gold or silver coins. If anything, Jackson should really be memorialized in coin form instead.
Oh, the irony.
With the removal of Jackson, why should a woman take the spot on the twenty?
Well, there are several reasons for that. In about five years (2020), it will be the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. This amendment was the one that allowed women the right to vote, the first step toward gaining equality with men.
It only seems fitting that on this anniversary, we see the status of women rise even further and evening out the playing field.
The website for the Women on 20s campaign has a fantastic quote by Gloria Steinem stating, “Women have always been an equal part of the past. They just haven’t been a part of history.”
This opportunity is a fantastic chance for women to be a part of history.
Before anyone disputes this by saying that only U.S. presidents have been on bills, I kindly ask that you find a $100 bill (or Google it) and tell me whose face is on it.
For those of you who don’t have that handy, it’s Benjamin Franklin. He has never been a U.S. president.
Women on 20s has conducted a poll to see what woman should be chosen to be put on the $20. If I had it my way, I would swap out half our currency to feature women for the sake of equality and representation. However, change is slow and I’m more than happy to at least see one woman’s face on our currency.
The finalists are Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Wilma Mankiller and Harriet Tubman. I think that all of these women are fine examples of being figures that have fought bravely for equality and justice. Each have tried (and succeeded) in making the world a kinder and better place for future generations.
Now, you may be asking why am I fussing over something that seems so small. It is after all just money. But, that’s the thing. It’s more than just a piece of paper that we exchange for goods.
We may hate to admit it, but money is important to us whether it be for survival or status. As a society, we put a great deal of value in money. Isn’t it time we value our women as much as our men?
