Face on $20 bill should feature a woman


Recently, The New York Times reported on a campaign that aims to put a woman’s face on the $20 bill. Hopefully, this can be achieved in 2020, the 100-year anniversary of women’s suffrage in the United States. Though many support this campaign, there is much debate about who should replace Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States. There is no better time than now for an influential woman to claim the position that Jackson should not have filled in the first place.

A genocidal racist and an opponent to currency, Jackson currently resides on the $20 bill. By removing the seventh president of the United States off of the $20 bill, the Women on 20s movement believes that this will allow for progress to be made in the movement for gender equality. On the Women on 20s website, it states, “Let’s make the names of female ‘disrupters’ — the ones who led the way and dared to think differently — as well-known as their male counterparts. In the process, maybe it will get a little easier to see the way to full political, social and economic equality for women.”

Susan B. Anthony is the most popular candidate for the $20 bill. Anthony is the epitome of a maverick. Refusing to accept social norms, Anthony started the first women’s movement in the United States and insisted that working women should manage their own money. Anthony viewed money as a vehicle for political and social change, and spent the majority of her own money supporting women’s right to vote. It seems fitting that the American people repay this much loved and revered historical figure by putting her on the $20 bill.

Another inspiring candidate is Wilma Mankiller, the first female Cherokee chief. During his presidency, Jackson was known for having supporting and enforcing the Indian Removal Act, which displaced and relocated numerous Native American tribes. The Cherokee march became known as the Trail of Tears, in which 4,000 Cherokees died of starvation, cold and disease. A descendant of one of the survivors during the march, Mankiller went on to become the first elected female Cherokee chief. Mankiller advocated to improve healthcare, government and education. While believing in the rich culture of her ancestors, Mankiller led her tribe with the utmost grace and courage. It would be symbolic to replace Jackson with a woman who prevailed even after her tribe was brutally mistreated.

Sojourner Truth is another candidate for the $20 bill. Truth was born into slavery; her sense of freedom, however, remained alive through her spirit. Separated from her children and the man that she loved, Truth continued to value friendship and loyalty. After attaining her own freedom, Truth went on to give talks about universal adult suffrage. Regardless of sex or gender, Truth believed that everyone had the right to vote. Truth reminded others that racism and sexism must be fought together. Truth’s story reminds us that all of our struggles are felt and shared by all. By placing her on the $20 bill, Truth can inspire those who feel marginalized or simply forgotten.

It is an interesting time for all women in America. Instead of putting each other down, we are endorsing powerful women who have forever impacted history.

Ultimately, any of these women could rightfully replace Jackson on the $20 bill. Each candidate truly embodies the triumphs and tribulations of being a woman in America. Now is the time to repay these women whose stories have been ignored for too long.