The news is out that one of the most notable figures in black history will be represented on United States currency. Yes, former slave and abolitionist, Harriet Tubman will replace former president and slave owner Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill which seems to be good news for the black community and people who stand for diversity. But is it the blessing that we think it will be?
For one, it is a definite blessing for Andrew Jackson, for he no longer has to roll around in his coffin in pain knowing that his face is removed from currency. If one did not know already, Andrew Jackson despised banks and never trusted the Bank of America, and look where he is now!
You can see the pain in his eyes and the irony on his forehead. #poorAndrew.
For the most part, social media responses have been on the positive side with some people making jokes:
Some see it as a positive change and some have mixed feelings about it.
Some strongly disagree with the idea or are hopefully just trolling:
And others who propose a different idea:
What is even more interesting is that there is news out saying that Harriet Tubman will be on the front of the bill while Andrew Jackson will be on the back. If this is the case, the United States as a whole has again failed Jackson and disrespected his wishes. In addition, it will be ironic and no one on social media seems to explain it as well as comedian Bill Maher.
In my honest opinion, I don’t mind if my fellow blacks are represented on our currency, but I feel like that would not change much. As I read through my Facebook news feed I realized that some of my “friends'” opinions were legitimate. Just because we have her face on the bill does not mean that the issues that troubled that woman are over. We have taken one step further, but racism is an underlying issue and I don’t think we can change the minds of everyone. What we can continue to do is promote change on the outside.
I heard other people say, this may just be used as an excuse to not change racial prejudices in the United States and I agree. We did the same thing to Native Americans and women by placing Sacagawea and Susan B. Anthony on the dollar coin yet Native Americans live on plantations and women are still fighting to be socially and financially equal to men.
In the future when another race issue arises between blacks, some people are going to say, “What now black people, you’ve been freed from slavery, you have access to the same public facilities as a white person, you already had Obama, and now you have Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill, what else do you want?” They are right with the blessings we have received, but what we want is social equality. We want people to not judge the entire race by the acts of some people within the race. We want people to not be afraid of us when we walk the streets. Most of all, we want all the stereotypes about us that were put out there by the media debunked and for people to see past the skin and our anger that was brewed over the injustice of our country.
Another idea I would like to mention is for greater representation of other races in the media and on our money. We have inspiring people from every race that were born and raised in this country and have experienced racial prejudice. Whenever I see the news, it seems to be black vs. whites, but what about the stereotypes we have created for Muslims, Native Americans, East Asians, South Asians, Hispanics, Latinos, people of mixed ancestry, and other groups we have wrongly judged? I agree that those groups probably did not have to suffer in the 400 years of slavery that blacks had to suffer, but they still make up this country. The United States is a huge melting pot of different cultures, different beliefs, different races, and different faces and we all want to be equal and feel equal.
It may seem impossible to represent everyone, but I believe we can. Currency is not the only medium that can be used for representation.
