Purely from a historical perspective, this is a pretty big deal. The United States has had the likeness of women on its currency in the past (Sacagawea and Susuan B. Anthony for example), but Ms. Tubman could quite possibly enjoy the widest distribution of them all. Think of just how commonly a $20 bill is used on a daily basis.
Plenty of people are thrilled by the idea. There are African Americans who rejoiced because a major contributor to the Underground Railroad, who aided countless slaves to freedom, is getting recognition. There are women who delight in knowing that a woman will be on the face of a popular denomination.
There are others, though, who aren't as excited by this decision.
Guess who falls into that category.
(I know you can't see me but I'm raising my hand with a blank look on my face.)
Let's see if I can attempt to briefly explain why putting Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill doesn't really mean anything to me:
1. Remember how excited people were when Obama was running for office and when he first got elected? Remember how a lot of people thought somehow he was going to solve everyone's problems? (This includes the people who thought he was going to singlehandedly obliterate racism.) Yeah? Have you noticed that a lot of the problems faced by African Americans haven't really gone anywhere in the last eight years? Why is that? Hmm ... maybe because Obama was never going to be capable of fixing all of that by himself (and to be fair, he never claimed he was).
This is sorta like that. Switching Jackson out for Tubman isn't going to magically reverse systemic racism and free wrongly convicted prisoners. It's not going to right any serious wrongs.
2. If you've noticed, there have been several changes to our currency over the last 15 years or so - some were more subtle and some were more obvious. Those cosmetic changes didn't actually do anything to or for anyone. I don't think any Texans have benefited in any significant way since the image of the State of Texas replaced the bald eagle on the back of the quarter. Harriet Tubman's face is no different.
3. Her face isn't going to bridge the wage gap between minorities and the majority.
4. Her face isn't going to bridge the wage gap between women and men.
5. If replacing the likeness of a slaveowner (Andrew Jackson) with that of a freedom fighter (Harriet Tubman) is somehow a just action, what is to be said about the fact that Jackson's face will still be on the back of the bill?
6. I don't personally carry a lot of cash these days. When I worked as a server in various restaurants I had cash all the time. Now I swipe almost everything. That being the case, even if I were to be somehow encouraged by Tubman's face it would still be a rare occurrence.
7. Read the comments section. Pick a social media site and read the comments. Not just about this, but about anything that could have any kind of racial tie. This is just going to remind us all how some people REALLY feel.
I'm actually going to cut it short simply because I could go on for a long time ...
Changing directions, ask yourself what actually was accomplished.
Some people have said that it's a step in the right direction, while admittedly small. They assert that, like Obama's election, it shows how far Black people in America have "progressed". So ... going from slavery to freedom (with Jim Crow, lynching, segregation, etc. in between) to having an African American POTUS and the face of a rebel slave on a denomination of currency is progress on the part of Black people?
Chris Rock made an interesting point once. To paraphrase, he explained that the changes in circumstances don't attest to improvement on the part of Black people in America. Instead, it shows the (very gradual) decline of the oppressive system that kept them in those conditions. I believe his exact words were "White people used to be crazy, now they're not as crazy anymore". I'm not going to blame White people (because this isn't the place for finger pointing) but I will agree that he has a point.
The new face of the $20 bill isn't an advancement. It's an allowance. What adult wants an allowance? More importantly, what adult wants to be in a position where he/she has to request an allowance and then rejoices after receiving it? To borrow an expression, what's chewing gum to a starving child?
On a positive note, I will say this:
I'm still all for the jokes, whether good, bad, or ugly. I just don't wanna hear the racist ones.
If "they" really want to make a difference, they'd use this image of Harriet Tubman.
Chime in while you dine in.
#BreakBreadBro
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