[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 62 (Thursday, April 21, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H1915]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HARRIET TUBMAN $20 BILL
(Mr. HOYER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, yesterday Secretary of the Treasury Lew
announced that for the first time U.S. paper currency will feature
portraits of great American women. I am very proud that a Maryland
native, an abolition hero, Harriet Tubman, was selected to be the new
face on the $20 bill.
Born into slavery on Maryland's eastern shore, she escaped to freedom
but returned to rescue her family members. It was dangerous and could
easily have cost Tubman her life or her freedom.
After rescuing her family, she kept coming back for others who sought
freedom, using the alias, Moses. How appropriate. She brought dozens of
people out of slavery, never once losing a passenger on her Underground
Railroad route.
During the Civil War, she was an agent for the Union. In the decades
following the war, she was active in the movement for women's suffrage.
I can think of no one more suited to be honored with a portrait on
the $20 bill. I am also pleased that other women will be featured on
our currency.
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