Emily Curtsinger–

 

Could Andrew Jackson’s time of the $20 bill be coming to a close?

 

“Women on 20s,” a nonprofit organization, is fighting for a women to be the face of the new $20 bill. Over the last year, the organization has been petitioning to put a woman’s face on our paper currency. After thousands of possible candidates were submitted online, the group has finally announced the final four: Eleanor Roosevelt, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks and the first female chief of the Cherokee Nation, Wilma Mankiller.

 

According to Women on 20s website, their mission is to make sure that when the new face of U.S. money is chosen, it is decided by We the People in a widely publicized online referendum from a slate of candidates who embody the values, ambitions and ethics upon which this country was founded.

 

The hope is that the petition to the government will make a change by the year 2020, which is the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.

 

“There are so few reminders in our everyday lives of great women who’ve contributed to the shaping of our nation,” Susan Ades Stone, the group’s executive director, said in a news release Monday. “It’s time to correct that, and putting a woman on a $20 bill is like having a little pocket monument.”

 

Some U of L students gave their input on the petition.

 

“Seeing a woman on paper money is just one of many positive actions towards total equality for women,” says sophomore student Katie Connor. “I think seeing a woman amongst males on money also symbolizes a true aspect of the feminist movement.”

 

Women on 20s has not yet set a deadline for the online voting but will know within a few weeks.

 

“It will be interesting to see who obtains the spot,” Connor continued. “However, it is still sending a conscious or unconscious message to everyone that women are just as impactful on society as men.”

 

Almost 300,000 votes have been cast, and there is still time to cast yours on Women on 20s website.