U.S. Mint’s American Women Quarters Program 2022 quarters.
Credit: US Mint

Check your change for some new faces! The United States Mint has released the first of the American Women Quarters Program. The program will feature prominent women in American history. The mint is a place where coins are made. In the United States and most other countries, only the government may mint (manufacture) money. American mints are supervised by the United States Mint, a division of the Department of the Treasury. Mints now operate in Denver, Colorado; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; San Francisco, California; and West Point, N.Y. They make only coins.

The first five women featured on quarters will be the poet and scholar Maya Angelou, the first American woman in space Dr. Sally Ride, the first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation and activist Wilma Mankiller, the Hispanic suffragist and politician Nina Otero-Warren, and the trailblazing Asian American actress Anna May Wong.

On the other side of the quarter will be George Washington facing right, a design made by Laura Gardin Fraser. Fraser’s design was submitted for the 1932 commemorative quarter for George Washington’s 200th birthday. However, the treasury secretary chose a different design by John Flannigan.

The mint began shipping quarters featuring Maya Angelou on Jan. 10, 2022. Angelou was an American writer who drew from the Black American storytelling tradition. She wove humor, wisdom, and folk sayings into her writing. Angelou was born on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri. She spent much of her early life in Stamps, Arkansas. Angelou was best known for her series of autobiographical writings, especially I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1970). It tells about the author’s childhood in the segregated rural South and her transition to urban life. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one of the country’s highest civilian honors, in 2011. Angelou died on May 28, 2014.

Make sure to keep an eye out for these legendary women in your pocket change. The mint will be releasing more quarters in the American Women Quarters program through 2025.

August 21, 2015

First Lt. Kristen Griest (left) carries a fellow soldier during combat training at Army Ranger School at Fort Benning on April 20, 2015. Credit: Spec. Nikayla Shodeen, U.S. Army

Today, Captain Kristen Griest and First Lieutenant Shaye Haver became the first women ever to graduate from the elite U.S. Army Ranger School at Fort Benning, Georgia. Griest and Haver, both graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, received their coveted “Ranger tabs,” the decoration for having completed the course. However, they will not be eligible to join, like their fellow male graduates, the 75th Ranger Regiment, a combat-oriented Special Operations Force. That regiment still excludes women.

First Lt. Shaye Haver during Ranger School training on July 12, 2015. Credit: Pfc. Yvette Zabala-Garriga, U.S. Army

This is likely to change very soon, however. The results of studies done by all four military branches are due to be presented later this year. U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has said that, barring drastic (and unexpected) opposition in the reports, all ground combat positions will be open to women—as early as next year.

Finishing the difficult Ranger course is an outstanding achievement for any soldier. The course has a 58 percent “washout” rate (failure to finish)—and this among already fit and hardened troops. Over 61 days, “students” get very little sleep as they balance, climb, dangle, hike, parachute, run, rappel (descend a rock face by rope), shiver, and often go hungry, all while carrying heavy packs and weapons—and often each other. All this is done under extremely stressful conditions in the heat of Georgia woods, in the cold of the mountains, and in the swamps of Florida. Physical fitness is raised to fanatical levels, and endurance is prized above all else. How much can you take?

But it’s not all about brawn. To be a Ranger you need brains, too. Aside from combat and squad tactical training (emphasizing raiding and reconnaissance), students must demonstrate innovative leadership ability, solve complex problems, and overcome seemingly impossible odds.

The Ranger graduation ceremony is held at the appropriately named Victory Pond parade ground at Fort Benning. The sense of joy and accomplishment students feel upon graduation is accompanied by one of great mental and physical relief.

Other World Book articles

• Airborne troops
• Infantry

July 12, 2013

Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl shot by the Taliban, spoke today at the United Nations (UN) on the occasion of  “Malala Day.” She told a specially convened youth assembly that books and pens scare such extremist groups as the Taliban. A Taliban gunman shot Malala in the head on a school bus in October 2012 because of her campaign for girls’ rights, including the right to an education.

Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai spoke today to a special youth assembly in the plenary chamber at the United Nations.  (© Mario Tama, Getty Images)

“They are afraid of women,” Malala told the forum, noting that the Taliban’s attack had only made her more resolute: “Weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, courage and fervor was born. . . I speak not for myself but for those without a voice,” she continued, stating that she is fighting for the rights of women because “they are the ones who suffer the most.”

According to the UN Statistics Division, fully one-quarter of all young women worldwide have not completed primary school. Malala’s native Pakistan ranks among the lowest in terms of female literacy and the enrollment of girls in school.

After Malala presented UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon with a petition demanding universal education, he addressed the special assembly: “She is calling on us to keep our promises, invest in young people and put education first.” He credited Malala with bringing the issue of women’s education to worldwide attention. Her petition bore more than 3 million signatures.

After being shot, Malala Yousafzai was flown from Pakistan to the United Kingdom for treatment. She now lives in Birmingham, England.

Additional World Book articles:

• Pakistan 2012 (a Back in Time article)
• Fifty Years of Defending Human Rights for All (a special report)

A Saudi Arabian court sentenced a woman to 10 lashes for defying the nation’s ban on female drivers. She was found guilty of driving a car in Jeddah in July. Since the 1960′s, educational and occupational opportunities for Saudi woman have increased somewhat. However, the Saudi government continues to enforce a strict version of Sunni law known as Wahhābism. Under this version of Islamic law, women are not allowed to drive or travel without the permission of a male relative.

On September 25, Saudi King Abdullah announced that women will be permitted to vote and run as candidates in municipal (city) elections beginning in 2015. Saudi activists praised the decision as an important step in efforts to loosen restrictions on Saudi women. King Abdullah also announces that women will have the right to serve on the Shura Council, an advisory board that the king can consult. All members of the board are appointed by the government.

Additional World Book articles:

• Human rights
• Shari`ah
• Woman’s suffrage