The only real life woman on U.S. paper money is Martha Washington, first on a bill in 1886. There have been no African Americans. Harriet Tubman, American hero, both a woman & an African American, was set to replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 in 2020. The Trump admin delayed the bill, a crushing disappointment, a continued denial of the contributions of women & African Americans. This month I propose 10 women for U.S. paper money. Harriet Tubman is first. #WomenOnUSPaper$
MARCH 2020
HARRIET TUBMAN 1822-1913
Harriet Tubman was an enslaved person who escaped slavery, returned to the South and led many enslaved people to freedom, she served as a scout for the Union Army during the Civil War, led some Civil War battles and was a champion for Women’s Suffrage. Tubman had seizures throughout her life likely due to a severe blow to her head and beatings while she was enslaved. Tubman was to scheduled be the first woman depicted on U.S. Paper currency in more than a century. In 2019 the Trump administration refused to issue the scheduled Harriet Tubman twenty-dollar bill. #WomenOnUSPaper$
SUSAN B ANTHONY 1820-1906
A social reformer and women’s rights activist Anthony was committed to social equality and spent a lifetime writing, organizing and speaking out on the abolition of slavery, temperance, equal rights for both women and African Americans and woman’s suffrage. Working alongside Elizabeth Cady Stanton for 50 years, Anthony was a tireless abolitionist and suffragist. #WomenOnUSPaper$
RACHEL CARSON 1907-1964
Carson was a marine biologist, author and conservationist. Her 1962 groundbreaking book Silent Spring brought the problems caused by synthetic pesticides to the American public. Silent Spring was widely opposed by chemical companies. The book led to a ban on DDT and other pesticides and inspired a grassroots environmental movement leading to the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. #WomenOnUSPaper$
AMELIA EARHART 1897-1964
Earhart was an American aviation pioneer and author and was the first female aviator to fly solo nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean. Earhart held many other aviation records, wrote best-selling books about her flying experiences, and was instrumental in the formation of The Ninety-Nines, an organization for female pilots. In 1937 during an attempt to circumnavigate the world Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared over the Pacific Ocean. #WomenOnUSPaper$
BARBARA JORDAN 1936-1996
Jordan was an attorney, politician and leader in the Civil Rights Movement. Among other accomplishments, she was the first African-American woman elected to the Texas Senate after Reconstruction, the first southern African-American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives on her own right, served as speaker of the House, and was the first woman to deliver a keynote address at the 1976 Democratic National Convention. She paid tribute to the importance of the moment by noting that, “My presence here is one additional bit of evidence that the American dream need not forever be deferred.” #WomenOnUSPaper$
HELEN KELLER 1880-1968
Helen Keller was an American author, political activist, and lecturer. She was the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. Keller learned to speak, was proficient at reading braille and reading sign language with her hands. She was well-traveled and outspoken in her convictions, giving speeches worldwide. A member of the Socialist Party of America and the World she campaigned for women’s rights, womans suffrage, labor rights, anti-militarism, and was an advocate for people with disabilities. #WomenOnUSPaper$
WILMA MANKILLER 1945-2020
Mankiller was a Cherokee activist and served as Principal Chief from 1985 to 1995. During her administration, the Cherokee government built new health clinics, created a mobile eye-care clinic, established ambulance services, created early education, and adult education programs; launched job training programs; developed revenue programs, including factories, retail stores, restaurants, and bingo operations; and established self-governance, allowing the tribe to manage its own finances. She was a tireless advocate working to improve the image of Native Americans and to combat the misappropriation of native heritage. #WomenOnUSPaper$
ROSA PARKS 1923-2005
Rosa Parks was an activist in the civil rights movement best known for her refusal to move to the back of a bus in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955. She refused to give up her seat, in the colored section, to a white passenger when the whites only section was filled. Parks became an iconic symbol in the fight for civil rights, and continued to fight for equality throughout her life. #WomenOnUSPaper$
SALLY RIDE 1951-2012
Sally Ride, astronaut and physicist became the first American woman in space in 1983, and was the youngest American astronaut to travel in space at the age of 32. Ride was selected as an astronaut in 1978 as part of NASA Astronaut Group, the first to admit women, one of 35 selected from 8000 applicants. She spent more than 343 hours in space and later named to the Rogers Commission investigating Shuttle accidents (Challenger and Columbia), was assigned to NASA headquarters and led NASA’s first strategic planning effort, authored the report “NASA Leadership and America’s Future in Space” and founded NASA’s Office of Exploration. #WomenOnUSPaper$
ELEANOR ROOSEVELT 1884-1962
As First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt advocated for expanded roles for women in the workplace, the civil rights of African and Asian Americans, and the rights of World War II refugees. Following her husband’s (President Franklin Roosevelt) death in 1945, Roosevelt remained active in politics for the remaining 17 years of her life. She pressed the United States to join and support the United Nations and became its first delegate. She served as the first chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights and oversaw the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. #WomenOnUSPaper$
