Thursday, September 17, 2015

Which Woman on the $10?

The Treasury has decided to drop Alexander Hamilton from the ten dollar bill, and replace him with a woman.  They have solicited public input on which woman it should be.

A poll found that the top choices of U.S. adults were:

Eleanor Roosevelt (29%)

Harriet Tubman (20)

Susan B. Anthony (11)

Amelia Earhart (11)

Sacagawea (11)


My choice would be a triple portrait of the three women now displayed in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda in a sculpture:

Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucretia Mott.

If I could get only one, I would go with Anthony, though she has already appeared on the dollar coin.

2 comments:

Mac said...

Why must we re-write American history? I cannot fathom why any of the five women could conceivably replace Secretary Hamilton on the $10 bill. None of the five can come close to matching the importance of Alexander Hamilton to the great American experiment (founding father; principle member of Washington’s staff in the War; wrote many of the Federalist Papers promoting the ratification of the Constitution; first Secretary of the Treasury; founder of the nation's financial system; accomplished the federal funding of the states' Revolutionary War debts by the Federal government, a principal demand of many States in exchange for ratification of the Constitution). Of the current portraits on authorized US paper currency, all have served as President of the United States, except Hamilton ($10), Benjamin Franklin ($100), and Salmon P. Chase ($10,000). All coins bear the likeness of Presidents except two one dollar coins (Anthony and Sacagawea—two of the proposed five). Certainly Dr Franklin (delegate to both Continental Congresses, Ambassador to France during the Revolutionary War, signer of the Constitution) merits a place on our currency ahead of any of the five women. If we simply must redesign currency for the sake of political correctness, replace Chase (the 25th Secretary of the Treasury and the one whose only real claim to fame is that it was on his watch that paper currency was first issued by the United States and the first income tax—later found to be unconstitutional—was implemented). Put Mrs Roosevelt on the $10,000 bill in place of Chase. Oh, sure, that bill is no longer in general circulation, but neither are the bills portraying Presidents McKinley ($500), Cleveland ($1,000), Madison ($5,000), and Wilson ($100,000). That ought be sufficient and honorable company for a former first lady.

Mac said...

By the way, when she is finally deceased (may it be a long time in coming), I would have no problem with replacing Kennedy of the 50 cent piece with the first woman to serve as President of the United States. I think the silhouette of President Fiorina would be perfect! (Gotcha, Prof)