Harriet Tubman is going to replace President Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill.

Treasury Secretary Jack Lew made the announcement in a letter to the American people on Wednesday. This is a change to previous plans to replace Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill. The new plans will keep Hamilton on the $10 and add images of woman's suffrage leaders to the back.

Tubman was a 19th century abolitionist. She was born into slavery in Maryland in the 1820s and escaped in 1849. She was a leader on the Underground Railroad, a Union spy during the Civil War and an advocate for women's suffrage.

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.  - Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew

Secretary Lew also announced plans for new $10 and $5 notes. The back of the new $10 will feature an image of the historic march for suffrage that ended on the steps of the Treasury Department and honor the leaders of the suffrage movement: Lucretia Mott, Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Alice Paul. The front of the new $10 note will maintain the portrait of Alexander Hamilton.

The new plans for the reverse of the new $5 will honor events at the Lincoln Memorial that helped to shape our history and our democracy and prominent individuals involved in those events, including Marian Anderson, Eleanor Roosevelt and Martin Luther King Jr.

Secretary Lew added that the Bureau of Engraving and Printing will work closely with the Federal Reserve to accelerate work on the new $20 and $5 notes, with the goal of getting all three new notes go into circulation as quickly as possible, consistent with security requirements.

Source: VIA

 

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