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The US Treasury Is Finally Going to Put a Woman's Face on Paper Currency

Alexander Hamilton will soon be replaced on the $10 bill with a woman "who was a champion for our inclusive democracy."
Photo via Flickr user frankieleon

Last month, a non-profit group called Women on 20s launched a country-wide campaign to petition President Obama to replace notorious bank hater and generally shitty dude Andrew Jackson with a woman on the $20 bill. The group held a poll to ask America which woman's visage they'd like to see instead of slave-owning Jackson's, and the votes overwhelmingly leaned in Harriet Tubman's favor. According to the New York Times, the US Treasury has recently decided to give the people what they want (sort of)—they just announced plans to replace Alexander Hamilton on the $10 with a woman. Jackson gets to stay where he is.

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As exciting as it is to finally have a woman on a piece of the nation's currency, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to bump Hamilton, a founding father and original Secretary of the Treasury, but leave Andrew Jackson—whose appearance on a bill still confounds historians.

Ultimately, the inclusion of a woman on a paper note will be a long-overdue move, regardless of the face it will replace. Susan B. Anthony and Sacagawea were both featured on short-lived and unpopular dollar coins, but that's hardly a fitting tribute to the women who have helped shape the country. Current Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew said that the Treasury would chose a woman "who was a champion for our inclusive democracy." Sounds like Harriet Tubman could still get her face on a bill, after all.

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