The face of late Cuban singer, Celia Cruz, will appear on United States currency as part of the American Women Quarter Program.
The American Women Quarter Program is a four-year program that celebrates the accomplishments and contributions made by women to the development and history of the country.
Faces of the honourees will grace US currency from 2022 – 2025. The program was launched by the United States Mint, a bureau of the department of Treasury responsible for printing coinage in the United States.
Cruz is widely known as the Queen of Salsa, she was chosen along with four other exemplary women from history.
With her inclusion in the programme, Cruz will be making history as the first Afro-Latina to appear on the coin.
The singer is considered one of the most influential Latin singers of all time and a cultural icon.
She is remembered for her highly influential body of work consisting of 37 albums.
Cruz was a naturalised Cuban-American singer and one of the most popular Latin artistes of the 20th century.
She rose to fame in Cuba during the 50s as a singer of guarachas, earning the nickname “La Guarachera de Cuba”.
In the following decades, she became known globally as the Queen of Salsa due to her work in Latin music.
Among the honourees is Patsy Takemoto Mink, the first woman of colour to serve in the US Congress.
Included are Mary Edwards Walker, a women’s rights advocate and civil war era surgeon; Pauli Murray, a poet, activist, and lawyer; and Zitkala-Ša, a native American writer, composer, and educator.
“All of the women being honoured have lived remarkable and multi-faceted lives, and have made a significant impact on our Nation in their own unique way,” said Ventris Gibson, the Mint Director.
“The women pioneered change during their lifetimes, not yielding to the status quo imparted during their lives.
“By honouring these pioneering women, the Mint continues to connect America through coins, which are like small works of art in your pocket,” the Mint Director stated.
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