Bill Text: NJ AR177 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges U.S. Department of Treasury to place Harriet Tubman on $20 bill without delay.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-07-20 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly State and Local Government Committee [AR177 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-AR177-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman CAROL A. MURPHY
District 7 (Burlington)
SYNOPSIS
Urges U.S. Department of Treasury to place Harriet Tubman on $20 bill without delay.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Assembly Resolution urging the United States Department of the Treasury to place Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill without delay.
Whereas, Harriet Tubman remains one of the most famous women in American History; and
Whereas, An escaped slave herself, Tubman served as a conductor on the Underground Railroad leading 70 slaves out of Maryland north to their freedom while also providing instruction to 70 more who found their way to freedom on their own; and
Whereas, For a brief period of time, Tubman called New Jersey home working as a cook to raise money for her work as a conductor and settling freed slaves in Cape May; and
Whereas, In addition to her work on the Underground Railroad, she served as a spy, nurse, and cook for the Union Army during the Civil War; and
Whereas, In running a spy ring in South Carolina, Tubman proved herself invaluable at gathering clandestine information, forming alliances, and avoiding capture; and
Whereas, Tubman often ventured behind Confederate lines disguising herself as a field hand and leading scouting missions to identify and map out the locations of enemy mines, supply depots, and troops; and
Whereas, On June 1, 1863 she, along with Union Colonel James Montgomery and his Second South Carolina Volunteers, launched a raid on plantations along the Combahee River; and
Whereas, Although illiterate and unable to write down any of the intelligence she gathered, Tubman committed everything to memory and used it to guide ships towards strategic points near the shores of the Combahee River thereby allowing Union forces to avoid locations of torpedoes, pick up fleeing slaves, and deploy troops to destroy nearby Confederate plantations; and
Whereas, By the time it concluded, the Combahee Ferry Raid dealt a significant blow to the South's slaveholder economy and rescued more than 700 slaves from bondage, some of whom later enlisted in the Union army; and
Whereas, For her role in the raid, Tubman became the first woman in United States history to lead an armed military operation; and
Whereas, In her later years, Tubman dedicated herself to the cause of women's suffrage and established a home for the elderly; and
Whereas, Currently, plans to place Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill have been delayed until at least 2026; and
Whereas,
Given the extraordinary life she led, Harriet Tubman is worthy of recognition
on United States currency and plans to place her likeness on the $20 bill
should be implemented without delay; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. This House respectfully urges the United States Department of the Treasury to place the likeness of Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill without delay in recognition of her lifelong dedication to the cause of freedom and equality.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly to the President of the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury, Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, Speaker and Minority Leaders of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress elected from this State.
STATEMENT
This resolution urges the President of the United States and the Secretary of the Treasury to place the likeness of Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill without delay. Currently, plans to place Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill have been delayed until at least 2026.
Harriet Tubman remains one of the most famous women in American History. Through her work as a conductor on the Underground Railroad, as a scout and spy for the Union Army, and as a supporter of women's suffrage, Tubman dedicated herself to the cause of freedom and equality for all individuals regardless of race or gender. Given the extraordinary life she led, this House believes Harriet Tubman is worthy of being depicted on this nation's currency and efforts to place her likeness on the $20 bill should be done without delay.
