DN Editorial: SHE'S SO MONEY, BUT WHICH?

EVERY Philadelphian owes a debt of gratitude to Alexander Hamilton. He is much more than the somewhat dour face on the $10 bill. The man was the first treasury secretary of the United States, established the first major national bank and almost single-handedly wrote the U.S. Constitution (with some able assistance from James Madison.) It is this last achievement that ensures that Philadelphia will be eternally associated with the greatest single document written by men.

But the "men" part has become a bit problematic in recent years, given the fact that there is not one piece of paper currency that bears the image of an important historical female. The fact that there are a few coins that pay homage to Susan B. Anthony and Sacagawea doesn't make up for the surprising homogeneity of the bills in our wallets. So, earlier this month Hamilton's successor as treasury secretary, Jack Lew, announced that Hamilton would be kicked to the currency curb by a woman. It seems that Abigail Adams' admonishment to her husband to "remember the ladies" has finally been heard, several centuries on.

Of course, as with any type of change, this has caused some controversy. In fact, there is a growing movement in the country to "save Hamilton" for all the reasons expressed before. Some have suggested that instead of getting rid of Hamilton, the government should consider removing Andrew Jackson from the $20 bill because of what some historians call his racist aggression against the Native American populations and his general lack of character (which was apparently never a prerequisite for the presidency.)

But regardless of whether Alexander or Andrew is replaced, it is clearly time for a woman to appear front and center on U.S. currency. We are one of the few nations that does not honor a female, whether real or mythical, on its money. (Martha Wasington's portrait did appear on a $1 silver certificate in 1886.) England and all of the Commonwealth countries bear the likeness of Queen Elizabeth on their bills. France has the image of Marianne, the patriotic symbol of the Revolution, which in years past was modeled after both Brigitte Bardot and Catherine Deneuve. While we're not suggesting that Meryl Streep should appear on the $10 bill, it's important to have at least one piece of currency that reminds us that half of the U.S. population did not wear powdered wigs or have mutton-chop sideburns.

The nonprofit organization Women on 20s earlier in the year conducted a poll to determine whose face should appear on a $20 bill; Harriet Tubman was a favorite, followed by Eleanor Roosevelt. In our view, other contenders include Sacagawea, who led Lewis and Clark on their storied trek out west; Abigail Adams, for showing how independent and essential women have always been; Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean; Shirley Chisholm, the first person of her race and gender to be elected to Congress; and Marian Anderson, whose open-air concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial was a direct and victorious answer to the racism of that time, and of all the ages.

There are hundreds of others worthy of consideration. But with all due respect to the founders, who were probably too concerned with establishing a nation to be worrying about gender parity on the paper in our wallets, it's time to pick one of them.