On the Money! A Female Face on the Ten Dollar Bill

The Obama administration has announced that, as of 2020, the ten dollar bill will have a woman's face on it. It's about time! Inspired, I asked my Face Book friends: Who would you like to see replace Alexander Hamilton on the ten?
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Good news! The Obama administration has announced that, as of 2020, the ten dollar bill will have a woman's face on it. It's about time! Inspired, I asked my Face Book friends: Who would you like to see replace Alexander Hamilton on the ten?

The first response:

Eleanor Roosevelt!

Quickly followed by:

Harriet Tubman, hands down.

Then:

Moms Mabley.

Molly Brown. She's unsinkable so our currency would never crash.

Mae West. We could change E Pluribus Unum to "Come up and see me some time."

The suggestions continued, both serious and sarcastic:

Abigail Adams.

Barbara Walters!

Sojourner Truth.

Barbie!

Minnie Mouse -- the quintessential American female icon.

Aretha Franklin. The Queen of Soul would totally rock that bill.

One liberal pal suggested Hillary Clinton. "So she'd be able to raise even more money for her 2016 campaign!" My conservative friend Carol suggested Hillary too. "But only for a counterfeit bill, so it would be just as fake as she is." (I love Carol for her wit, not her politics.)

The responses continued pouring in:

Elizabeth Cady Stanton!

Marge Simpson -- complete with blue hair.

Amelia Earhart.

Jane Addams! She was the first American woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize, and a supporter of both civil rights and immigration reform. Progressive but non-partisan, an excellent role model in every way.

Politicians and public figures proved to be popular choices::

Rosa Parks.

Rachel Carson.

Shirley Chisholm.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg.

Ann Richards! Smart, sassy and savvy. What's not to love?

Eleanor Roosevelt, a great American who cared for the downtrodden and spoke up for them and for all women.

So did Pop Culture Icons:

Janis Joplin!

Samantha from 'Bewitched.'

Marilyn Monroe.

Elaine Stritch!

Leona Helmsley. But we'd have to replace E Pluribus Unum with "Only the little people pay taxes."

Oprah! After all, at one time or another, she's likely to have owned that dollar bill you're holding.

One friend apparently couldn't choose between a political figure and a pop culture icon:

I vote for either Eleanor Roosevelt or Grumpy Cat.

And my sister's choice?

Shirley Temple, iconic child actress and accomplished diplomat.

Within 24 hours, I'd received hundreds of responses. The woman who got the most votes by far? Eleanor Roosevelt. She gets my vote too.

But my own favorite response was this:

I vote for Maya Angelou. Especially if her wisdom could be transferred to everyone who handled the bill.

I'd pay a lot more than ten dollars to see that happen.

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