It looks like it’s finally official. Harriet Tubman is set to appear on a newly redesigned $20 bill. According to Politico, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew will make the big announcement sometime today The $5 will also be getting a change to commemorate Civil Rights leaders.
Last year, as part of a grassroots campaign to diversify our very white, very male, currency, a group called Women on 20s started an online petition to replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill.
The viral campaign offered user the opportunity to vote on which woman they would like to see on a $20 bill. The first round of voting narrowed the options down to four finalists — Harriet Tubman, Wilma Mankiller, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Rosa Parks. After a second round of voting, Harriet Tubman received the highest number of votes — 118,328. Eleanor Roosevelt came in second place with 111,227 votes.
The group also announced plans to appeal to Lew, who has the power to make the change.
The idea of putting Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill was met with mixed reactions, ranging from excitement to ethical concerns about putting a former slave on the physical representation of the main driver behind her enslavement.
One month after Women on 20s made the big announcement, the U.S. Treasury announced that it would unveil a redesigned $10 bill, featuring a woman, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of women having the right to vote. Back then, the office also made it clear that Hamilton would remain on the bill in some way.