Members of Congress unveiled the Harriet Tubman coin collection

U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, D-Missouri, told the Grio that it was essential “not to forget the abolitionist.”

Members of Congress on Tuesday unveiled a coin collection dedicated to the life and legacy of abolitionist Harriet Tubman.

U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, told TheGrio that members of Congress are “excited” to have the social activist’s likeness on the currency.

U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, D-Missouri, said it was essential “to make sure that Harriet we Tubman is not forgotten.”

“There are members of Congress and other leaders in this country who want to erase our history… we need to make sure more people know our history,” Bush told the Grio.

On Tuesday, Proctor and Gamble sponsored an event at the U.S. Capitol celebrating the Tubman Commemorative Coin Program. U.S. Representatives Beatty were present; Gregory Meeks, D.N. Y., U.S. Senators Sherod Brown, D-Ohio, Woody Keown, Jr., CEO of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, and Karen Hill, CEO of Harriet Tubman Home, Inc.

The coin collection consists of five-dollar gold coins, one-dollar silver coins and half-dollar coins, all of which feature images of Tubman and depict various stages of her fight for justice, including the contributions she made during the U.S. Civil War and her partnership with the Union Army to freeing over 700 enslaved people.

Congressman Meeks said at the ceremony that the coin collection is an emblem of progress and “a sheer acknowledgment of the impact that Harriet Tubman has had on American history.”

Bush told the Grio that Tubman is one of her heroes and that the coin collection makes lawmakers think of Tubman’s “march to freedom.”

She said it is vital to recollect Tubman’s legacy. Now that the coin collection has been released, it can’t be “disregarded,” the congresswoman argued.

Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, and members of the Congressional Black Caucus speak with reporters at the House Democratic Caucus issues conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Thursday, March 10, 2022. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Beatty told TheGrio that the coin collection is “a great first step, but of course we want to see it on the $20 bill.”

The congresswoman said she was in talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who said the Biden-Harris administration was working to “get Tubman’s likeness” on the currency that currently features President Andrew Jackson’s portrait.

In 2022, Yellen revealed that the bill was scheduled to be published by 2030.

In an exclusive statement previously obtained by theGrio, Yellen said the Biden-Harris administration is committed to making sure “currency and coinage reflect the totality of this country’s diversity, including placing Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill.”

“We’ve never had a black woman on the $20 bill,” Beatty noted.

Test photo of Harriet Tubman on a $20 bill. Photo: ABC News

The Ohio lawmaker said she shouldn’t be “giving up” on ensuring Tubman’s face graces the $20 currency.

Referring to the delay, she noted, “It often takes us longer to fight for Black Americans.”

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