Rep. Barbara Lee, who helped lead the legislation to get the quarters program launched, tweeted following the news of the coins’ official release.
“The phenomenal women who shaped American history have gone unrecognized for too long –– especially women of color,” Lee wrote on Twitter. “Proud to have led this bill to honor their legacies.”
Other women in the series include astronaut Sally Ride, suffragist and political leader Nina Otero-Warren, actress Anna May Wong, and Wilma Mankiller, the first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation.
Maya Angelou passed away in 2014 at the age of 86. Her life’s work includes countless accolades and accomplishments like in 1992 when she became the first Black woman to present a poem during a presidential inauguration. She held more than 30 honorary degrees and published over 30 best-selling books in her lifetime.
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