# What famous woman would you like to see on the $20 bill? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 23, 2015, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776 "2015-03-23T15:12:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/41 "2015-03-23T19:30:30Z")
I would guess that with ATMs spitting them out, twenties are more in use than ever. Also, when people question the casual misogyny of the Dope, we can point to some of these ‘joke’ answers. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/42 "2015-03-23T19:34:31Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > $20 bills? Do people still use those? No. Mail yours to me, please. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/43 "2015-03-23T19:47:19Z")
Sojourner Truth gets my vote from that list. Harriet Tubman or Rosa Parks would be similarly worthy of the honor. Perhaps a design jointly featuring these influential women of the abolition and civil rights movements? Margaret Sanger should be disqualified for her unabashed support of eugenics. To put forth a name not on the list I’d suggest Barbara McClintock, though she lacks the name recognition needed for such an accolade. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/44 "2015-03-23T19:52:30Z")
I’d go with Sojourner Truth. I feel like she did more than Rosa Parks, who feels more like an accident of history, the women who happened to be in the right place at the right time. ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/45 "2015-03-23T19:52:47Z")
Out of the choices on the site, I voted for Alice Paul, Rosa Parks, and Eleanor Roosevelt. Harriet Tubman would also be a great choice. Honestly, our currency needs a little revamping - Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, etc, are fine, but is Grant really one of the five greatest Americans to ever live? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/46 "2015-03-23T20:02:22Z")
> [@Octarine](#): > > Out of the choices on the site, I voted for Alice Paul, Rosa Parks, and Eleanor Roosevelt. Harriet Tubman would also be a great choice. Honestly, our currency needs a little revamping - Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, etc, are fine, but is Grant really one of the five greatest Americans to ever live? No, and neither is Jackson, altho he gets unfairly blamed for some stuff. He had cojones, no doubt. But Teddy had the biggest! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/47 "2015-03-23T20:05:50Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > No, and neither is Jackson, altho he gets unfairly blamed for some stuff. He had cojones, no doubt. But Teddy had the biggest! 😛 I recall reading about how TR was shot in the chest while giving a campaign speech - medics tried to get him offstage, but he refused and finished his speech while bleeding profusely. Now, if we could get that one particular scene on a bill, it’d be hard to turn down . . . ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/48 "2015-03-23T20:16:15Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > I would guess that with ATMs spitting them out, twenties are more in use than ever. > > Also, when people question the casual misogyny of the Dope, we can point to some of these ‘joke’ answers. If you’re alluding to my post, I guess I should mention I has having lunch with my sister-in-law, her mother and SIL’s aunt. My SIL is in a woman’s study course and her aunt works at Planned Parenthood. Mom and aunt both marched in Equal Opportunity Amendment marches in the 70s. Many of the facetious suggestions were made by them. So if you’re saying my comments are misogynist, you are also accusing three women (including two very committed feminists) of being misogynist. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/49 "2015-03-23T20:20:59Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I’d go with Sojourner Truth. I feel like she did more than Rosa Parks, who feels more like an accident of history, the women who happened to be in the right place at the right time. Rosa Parks planned to get arrested and then challenge the law that blacks had to sit in the back. She was an officer of the local chapter of the NAACP and her arrest was part of their strategy. ---
**Author:** ![Recusant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@Recusant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Recusant)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/50 "2015-03-23T20:28:38Z")
My vote goes to Andrew Jackson. While I agree it would be nice to have more people on our currency, it’s really kind of silly to boot someone off of a bill just because the actions they took, while acceptable (if harsh) at the time, don’t fit into our modern sensibilities. It’s downright insulting to punish someone for the actions of someone else; despite what that website claims, Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren were not, in fact, the same person. If you want to boot someone off for moral reasons, the best choice would be Lincoln; but given the man’s saintly reputation, that’s never going to happen. > [@romansperson](#): > > I think Alice Paul is a great choice. Anthony’s already been on the silver dollar, so I’d probably exclude her from the running. Alice Paul is already on a coin; the opposite side of… Taft, was it? > [@Gyrate](#): > > I want dollar coins. I just want some heft to them, like British pound coins. They need to feel like they’re worth more than a quarter. More the point, they need to be tactilely distinct from quarters; if you can’t feel the difference from a quick swipe through your pockets, there’ll be too much confusion. Make 'em bigger, smaller, thicker, thinner; put holes in the middle like the Canadians do (or did; I haven’t been to Canada in a while). Or, show some actual sense, realize that they won’t fit in vending machines anyway, and just don’t make them round. > [@DrDeth](#): > > Lincoln? Without him there’s still be slaves. The passage of the thirteenth amendment freed the slaves. Lincoln may have been an Illinois politician, but even they aren’t so corrupt as to try to be president and a congressman at the same time. The emancipation proclamation, many claim, freed slaves- but it only freed the slaves in the Confederacy, which Lincoln didn’t actually have legal authority over. The equivalent today would be Obama combating gun violence in this country by outlawing private ownership of guns in Canada. Also, the whole conscription thing? Using involuntary servants to end involuntary servitude- especially when it’s just a few decades after the US had fought a war with the UK to end that nonsense? Yeah. He’s a far better figure to get the boot than Jackson. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/51 "2015-03-23T20:28:39Z")
Jackson won the most important land battle of the War of 1812, was the embodiment of early 19th century populism, refused to be bullied by the moneyed interests aligned with the Second Bank of the U.S., and stared down the nullificationists of South Carolina, perhaps deferring the Civil War for a generation. When Lincoln died, he had in his pocket a newspaper clipping comparing his leadership favorably to Andew Jackson’s. He was arguably the strongest, most capable President between Washington and Lincoln, so there are good reasons he’s been on the $20 bill as long as he has. That said, his views and policies on slavery and Native Americans were such that I’d certainly support him being taken off the bill now. **Octarine** , you’re mostly right about T.R. being shot: [Theodore Roosevelt - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_roosevelt#Assassination_attempt). Hard to say who would win in a cage match between him and Jackson; they were both pretty damn tough. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/52 "2015-03-23T20:34:06Z")
> [@Knorf](#): > > Lets get away from politicians. How about artists, authors, composers, scientists? Andre Norton. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/53 "2015-03-23T20:35:12Z")
I’d go with Grace Hopper. She had an official high-ranking position(Admiral),and has serious science cred and influence. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/54 "2015-03-23T20:35:18Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Jackson won the most important land battle of the War of 1812, was the embodiment of early 19th century populism, refused to be bullied by the moneyed interests aligned with the Second Bank of the U.S., and stared down the nullificationists of South Carolina, perhaps deferring the Civil War for a generation. When Lincoln died, he had in his pocket a newspaper clipping comparing his leadership favorably to Andew Jackson’s. He was arguably the strongest, most capable President between Washington and Lincoln, so there are good reasons he’s been on the $20 bill as long as he has. That said, his views and policies on slavery and Native Americans were such that I’d certainly support him being taken off the bill now. > > **Octarine** , you’re mostly right about T.R. being shot: [Theodore Roosevelt - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_roosevelt#Assassination_attempt). Hard to say who would win in a cage match between him and Jackson; they were both pretty damn tough. We can just put a picture of some giant bull testicles on the $20 and let people decide if it’s TR or Jackson.😛 (But I think Teddy wins here) ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/55 "2015-03-23T20:42:28Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > D) None of the above? > > Seriously, I paid attention in history class, and most of the people on that list I couldn’t tell you the first thing about without Googling them. (I’m excluding the joke list.) Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony, and Eleanor Roosevelt are the only ones that I could recognize (and really, if we’re being honest, Susan B. Anthony is primarily famous for being on a coin that few people ever wanted or used). Margaret Sanger rings a bell somewhere, but again I’d have to look her up on Wikipedia or something. > > I’d say Elanor Roosevelt is the one that’s closest to be on part with the presidents. I think Diceman and I are of the same mindset. Some of these people I have to look up to even know who they are. It’d be hard to say they belong on currency if I don’t even recognize their name. > [@Diceman](#): > > That’s just an excuse. The real problem was that the US public doesn’t want dollar coins. Notice how Americans didn’t suddenly embrace them when they put presidents on them. Woah, I didn’t even realize I selected two quotes by Diceman. People would use dollar coins if the paper dollar was removed from circulation. Yes people would bitch about it; but within a year the bitching would be mostly over. I look at this way: By using the [Bureau of Labor Inflation Calculator](http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm), around 1973/74 $1.00 had about as much buying power as $5.00 today. Another way of looking at this is to say our lowest paper bill back then was was equivalent to $5.00 and people were OK with a $1.00 being our smallest bill. It only makes sense to get rid of the $1.00 paper bill in today’s economy. If nothing else, that would get the $2.00 bill in good circulation; but I’d be OK with a $5.00 being the lowest paper bill. As to the OP, I like Knorf’s suggestion. Let’s get some arts & science people in there. I don’t think I see Helen Keller on the list; she’d be a good person to at least be on the list. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/56 "2015-03-23T20:52:23Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Grace Murray Hopper Thirded. Military figure, significant contributor to the world (to say the least), and a non-politician. She did more for the US than a lot of Presidents. Put together. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/57 "2015-03-23T21:51:53Z")
Nellie Bly ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/58 "2015-03-23T21:56:56Z")
I like the Grace Hopper idea. Since we’re talking STEM, how about Sally Ride - she’s somebody that most people have a chance of recognizing. Not only an astronaut but in the LGBT community to boot! ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/59 "2015-03-23T21:59:09Z")
How about a woman who was significant but overshadowed by her husband (whether fairly or unfairly)? Abigail Adams, for example, or Eleanor Roosevelt. An offbeat choice: Annie Oakley, for all she personified as a woman of the Wild West. Marian Anderson, an opera soprano whose impact on confronting racism is if anything underrated. Actresses? Katharine Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Judy Garland… One thing this thread is showing convincingly, is how much women’s achievements in the U.S.A. and the world are really grotesquely, unfairly unrecognized. I mean, I knew that already, but laying it all out like this…well, shit. We haven’t even begun to covered all the possible good choices for names of significant scientists, composers, poets, writers, etc.! I’m ok with a few founders’ faces on currency, even Lincoln. But for og’s sake, it’s not like they’re about to be forgotten. Let’s get some of these women on there, and not just $20. If someone doesn’t know who she is, that’s just a good reason to look her up. It’s not like your average American really has much to tell you about Jackson anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2015, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776/60 "2015-03-23T22:09:49Z")
Sarah Palin. So nobody could make change from a $20. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-famous-woman-would-you-like-to-see-on-the-20-bill/715776.md?page=4)