OPINION: There’s a new face coming to the $20 Bill

Hero to many for her dedication to helping slaves in the South reach freedom in the North, Harriet Tubman will replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill beginning in 2020. (Photo illustration)

The new $20 bill is about to change from Andrew Jackson to Harriet Tubman in the year 2020. The U.S. Department of Treasury said that along with that, the $10 and $5 bill will change along with it. With no definite date when it will happen, the only thing absolute is Tubman’s face on the front of the bill, with Jackson being relegated to the back.

Harriet Tubman received the front of the bill for the valor she exhibited in helping slaves escape by her creating the Underground Railroad. She also rescued and led hundreds of slaves to freedom in 1849.  Then during the American Civil War in the early 1860s, Tubman served in the army as nurse, cook and spy. The Union Army used her because she knew the lands so well from helping slaves escape. Not only did she save slaves, she helped thousands of people of both races during the war.

The seventh U.S. President Andrew Jackson has been the face of the $20 bill since 1928.

Jackson was born in poverty and worked his way up to a wealthy Tennessee lawyer and politician in the 1800s. His leadership during the war of the United States and Britain broke out and he earned fame as a military hero and America’s political influential figure during the 1820s and 1830s. Jackson became the leader of the new Democratic Party during the development of American politics. He was a supporter of the states rights and slavery’s extension in the new western territories.

Jackson’s election marked a turning point in America’s politics as the power shifted from east to west. His opponents and followers shifted from strong personalities and eventually emerged into different political parties. Therefore forming the Democratic parties and the Republican parties.

So why now is this changing? And why is it Harriet Tubman? Some believe it is to make all races fair. While others believe it is because she earned it fair and square. And then there are some who are curious as to why a woman gets it and not a man like Martin Luther King Jr.?

Well, the last time a woman was on a form of currency in the United States was Martha Washington, appearing on a $1 silver certificate many years ago. Although other women around the world have always been on forms of currency, America is far behind and is trying to catch up by also putting other historic women on the $5 and $10 bills in the future.

In the year 2020, when the new dollars are printed and distributed, marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which guarantees all American women the right to vote.

So not only is Harriet Tubman the first women to be on a U.S. currency, this also makes her the first African-American person to be on money ever in U.S. history.

So how will this effect people who see the money? A rumor has gone around that the main reason of putting  Harriet Tubman is to open people’s minds and remind them that there is more than just one race and more contributions to the world. It makes a statement. While others have no opinion at all. The main question has become, will it really affect us on a deeper sense or is it just another dollar bill with another face on it? The choice will be yours.

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