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The United States of America is honoring Celia Cruz’s legacy by releasing currency with her face. The Queen of Salsa music will appear in the nation’s quarter after the United States Mint began recognizing women’s contributions in different areas.
The Mint, the U.S.’s sole manufacturer of legal tender coinage, ensures a well-rounded representation so that we all can enjoy the American Women Quarters Program.
“All of the women being honored have lived remarkable and multi-faceted lives and have made a significant impact on our Nation in their own unique way,” said Mint Director Ventris C. Gibson in an official statement.
In 2023 Bessie Coleman, the first African American and first Native American woman pilot; Edith Kanakaʻole, indigenous Hawaiian composer, custodian of native culture and traditions; Eleanor Roosevelt, first lady, author, and civil liberties advocate; Jovita Idar, Mexican-American journalist, activist, teacher, and suffragist; and Maria Tallchief, America’s first prima ballerina, will be the faces gracing the quarters.
For 2024, in addition to the Cuban-American singer, cultural icon, and one of the most popular Latin artists of the 20th century; Patsy Takemoto Mink, the first woman of color to serve in Congress; Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, Civil War era surgeon, women’s rights advocate, and abolitionist; Pauli Murray, poet, writer, activist, lawyer, and Episcopal priest; and Zitkala-Ša (“Red Bird”), writer, composer, educator, and political activist will appear on the coins, opposite of the portrait of George Washington.
The American Women Quarters program will continue choosing five different women each year through 2025.