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U.S. Mint Rejects D.C. Quarter Design [UPDATED] |
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After moving to Washington, D.C., I quickly noticed the slogan on the local red, white, and blue license plates. Every D.C. plate says:
Taxation Without Representation
That’s right. A full 235 years after the Sons of Liberty - led by prominent founding fathers like Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, Patrick Henry, John Hancock, and John Adams - dumped tons of British tea into Boston Harbor among cries of, “No taxation without representation,” this basic issue has still not been resolved. D.C. residents lack a voting member in either house of Congress, yet we pay federal taxes like everyone else. Just last year, Congress again voted to disenfranchise its half-million residents.
On the one hand, the slogan on D.C.’s license plates makes me smile. Even after 200 years, no taxation without representation is still a great slogan. The founding fathers new knew how to attract attention and popular support.
On the other hand, the fact that half a million people don’t enjoy the basic right of representation that dates back to the Magna Carta and the 13th century is disheartening. The cause is just, and so is the form of protest. This slogan should not die until all Americans have representation in Congress.
The U.S. Mint apparently disagrees. Today, the Mint rejected a proposed design for D.C.’s commemorative quarter that included the above slogan. The quarter, part of the Mint’s state quarter series, was rejected for its controversial nature:
Changing how the District of Columbia (the Seat of Government of the United States) is represented in Congress is a contemporary political issue on which there presently is no national consensus and over which reasonable minds differ.
Although the United States Mint expresses no position on the merits of this issue, we have determined that the proposed inscription is clearly controversial and, therefore, inappropriate as an element of design for United States coinage.
Not only are D.C. residents denied the right to determine what happens with their tax dollars, now they can’t even determine what goes on their own damn quarter. It’s pretty insulting, not to mention wrong.
This country was founded on the idea that government should be responsive to the people. When a group of citizens are forced to support the government but don’t receive a say in that government’s actions, every American’s liberty is diminished. At the very least let D.C. publicly protest its plight.
UPDATE: You can sign the petition to urge the U.S. Mint to reconsider, though I doubt they’re listening…
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just thought you should know there’s a typo about what the founding father’s “new” in the third paragraph.
Fixed. But now that we’re on the subject, you misused an apostrophe in your comment.
I’ve always thought that the “Taxation without representation” bit on the license plates was one of the ballsiest things I’ve seen on a state- (or district-)wide basis. Someone’s got a pair on them.
touch’e.
I thought the Mint’s response was reasonable. The nature of the District’s representation status is up for debate, and they don’t want American currency to be used as a political billboard. Put this to another issue (environment, income tax, etc.) and the inappropriate quality seems more distinct.
D.C. is not a state, it belongs to Maryland, this was decided way back when, and when it was brought back up in the early 1990’s. it was confirmed that D.C. can not be a state, it belongs and always has belonged to Maryland. it’s on loan to the Federal Government.
Then shouldn’t the residents of Washington DC be able to vote in Maryland elections for congress and senate?
Or, taken the other way, shouldn’t DC residents be exempt from federal taxes?
wouldn’t that make DC the next Nevada in terms of people wanting to set up corporations there
“Fixed.”, Is not a complete sentence.
Touche. But in informal writing, sentence fragments like that are acceptable - whereas a misused apostrophe should never be. Also, the comma in your sentence is unnecessary. Still wanna spar?
DC belongs to Maryland? What? Does Virginia know?
Virginia got its portion of the District (Alexandria, Arlington) back before/during the Civil War. Additionally, no part of the Potomac is part of Virginia territory, so that covers that stretch of the river.
Unless you’re making a sly joke about the invading hordes of commuters who pay nothing in taxes to support the infrastructure they use.
Advice to Washingtonians: Taxation WITH representation is not much better.
Alex, you received free proofreading service from this gentleman. There is no reason to snap at him for it. Be a big person and say thank you.
I had the same confused response to the DC license plates, then I looked up “no taxation without representation” on Google and learned what virtual representation was about. Check out christian apologist William Paley for the “god arguement”.