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Voting Rights Words May Be Barred From D.C. Coin

THE FUTURE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA commemorative quarter won't have a panda bear or cherry blossom on it, that's for sure. But will there be a message decrying the District's lack of a full and equal vote on Capitol Hill? D.C. officials hope so, but are running into problems with a long-standing U.S. Mint guideline for the popular state-themed coins: No controversial messages.

As The Post's Mary Beth Sheridan reports:

Yesterday, the District submitted three ideas for its quarter, part of a popular program that has produced coins representing each of the 50 states. One would feature the three stars and two bars of the D.C. flag; another would portray Benjamin Banneker, the 18th-century abolitionist who helped survey the city; and another would depict jazz great Duke Ellington, a D.C. native.
But according to D.C.'s plans, each coin design would also have a message related to voting rights, which is likely going to get a thumbs down from federal officials.

The U.S. Mint hasn't yet officially nixed D.C.'s proposed designs, and spokesman Greg Hernandez declined to tell The Post whether they'd be rejected.

» "Mint Expected to Balk at Voting Rights Message" [WaPo]

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COMMENTS (1)

  • facts are controversial now? is kind of like how reality has a liberal bias?

    By IMGoph , Posted February 26, 2008 8:29 PM
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