Harriet Tubman Inducted into Military Intelligence Corps Hall of Fame; Back on Track to Grace the $20 Bill

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (@lakinhutcherson)

On Veteran’s Day in 2018, I posted the following to the Good Black News Facebook Page with the photo above:

This is Harriet Tubman in her later years. She lived into her early 90s and of course is best known for leading over 400 enslaved people to freedom as a conductor on the Underground Railroad.

What is less well known is that during the Civil War she worked as a scout and spy for the Union Army, and was the first woman to lead an armed expedition in the war by guiding the raid at Combahee Ferry, which liberated more than 700 slaves.

So GBN honors this Veteran on Veteran’s Day (observed), her grit, her bravery, her purpose. A true American hero who should be on our $20 already!! #patriot#americanhero #veteransday

As this nation continues to reckon with so much of its unexamined history, it is heartening to report that according to The Washington Post, Harriet Tubman has been inducted into the Military Intelligence Corps Hall of Fame.

Additionally, the Biden administration committed in late January to speed up the process to get Tubman on the $20 bill as the Obama administration sought to do by the year 2020 (the plan was not carried out by former U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

This week, Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D) and Ben Sasse (R) in a show of bipartisanship sent a letter to current Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to make the case that America’s currency should reflect the diversity of the nation.

No date for the issue of the Tubman $20 has been released as of this publication. Update to come.