Mikulski works to put Tubman on $10 bill

“Women have been trailblazers in shaping our nation, using grit, passion and determination to seize the day and make a difference. Harriet Tubman was brave beyond measure in fighting for those who could not fight for themselves,” Mikulski said. “Featuring her on the ten-dollar bill will be a fitting tribute, recognizing her lasting legacy while inspiring future generations of women and girls.”

Mikulski, an avid women’s rights advocate in a Congress long dominated by men, introduced the legislation with U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.

The Harriet Tubman Currency Tribute Act of 2015 will direct Secretary of the Treasury Jacob J. Lew to ensure all newly issued $10 bills feature Tubman by 2021. The bill was introduced to the Senate on July 8 and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

According to the U.S. Treasury, the department in 2013 selected the $10 bill for redesign with features that celebrate democracy. It’s due out in 2020, which is the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment that gave women the right to vote.

Earlier this year, the Treasury started an outreach campaign to get input on which woman the public wants on the $10 bill. Alexander Hamilton, a Founding Father and first secretary of the U.S. Treasury, is currently on the $10 bill.

Tubman is one of a number of women who are being considered for the $10 bill. Some big names being tossed around alongside Tubman are Susan B. Anthony, Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Ida B. Wells and other women representative of U.S. democracy.

Tubman was born a slave in Dorchester County in 1822. She escaped slavery in 1849 and later became a famous “conductor” of the Underground Railroad, returning to the Eastern Shore several times over the course of 10 years to lead hundreds of slaves to freedom.

Tubman was also a nurse and spy for the Union during the Civil War, and became active in the women’s suffrage movement. She died in 1913 in Auburn, N.Y.

In 2012, Sen. Mikulski was given the Harriet Ross Tubman Lifetime Achievement Award by the Maryland African American Tourism Council for her work to promote the life and legacy of Tubman.

Mikulski was key to establishing a Harriet Tubman national monument and state park at the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Cambridge, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Lew has stressed that the image of Alexander Hamilton will remain part of the $10 bill. According to the U.S. Treasury, there are many options to continue honoring Hamilton — one being producing two bills — however, the department is exploring a variety of possibilities.

Whichever woman is placed on the $10 bill, it will be the first time a woman’s likeness appears on U.S. paper currency. The last time portrait images on U.S. currency changed was 1914 and 1928, according to the U.S. Treasury.

The U.S. Treasury — through a series of roundtables, public meetings and through its website — has been collecting input on which woman should appear on the $10 bill. It also is reviewing all comments and content tagged on online social media websites like Twitter with the “TheNew10” hashtag.