The U.S. Mint announced Monday it has begun circulating the first coin in its American Women Quarters Program, starting with Maya Angelou, the late poet, novelist, and civil rights activist.
Angelou is the first black woman to appear on the coin.
Angelou is depicted on the quarter with her arms uplifted and a backdrop of “a bird in flight and a rising sun, images inspired by her poetry and symbolic of the way she lived,” according to a description from the Mint.
TREASURE HUNTERS SUE FOR RECORDS OF FBI EXCAVATION OF CIVIL WAR GOLD
Angelou, who died in 2014 at 86, rose to national acclaim after publishing her autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in 1969. In 2010, she was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom by former President Barack Obama.
Last year, the Mint announced several high-profile women would appear on the coin, including Angelou, Sally Ride, and Wilma Mankiller.
The first coin of the American Women Quarters™ Program is here—the Maya Angelou Quarter! Learn about honoree Maya Angelou and #HerQuarter in our press release at https://t.co/yYzGJpXQDD. Look for it in your change. @USTreasury @smithsonian @womenshistory @DrMayaAngelou @WCPInst pic.twitter.com/GVUpcnbszq
— United States Mint (@usmint) January 10, 2022
“Each 2022 quarter is designed to reflect the breadth and depth of accomplishments being celebrated throughout this historic coin program. Maya Angelou, featured on the reverse of this first coin in the series, used words to inspire and uplift,” said Mint Deputy Director Ventris Gibson.
Angelou is the first of 20 women to be depicted on the quarter through the program in the next four years.
The program was first established through the Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020, which requires five prominent women to be recognized on quarters every year between 2022 and 2025.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Starting late January or early February, people can consult with their banks about their availability of the Angelou quarter, according to the Mint.
