"To commemorate the abolition of slavery, the [Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee] had recommended an image of Frederick Douglass on the obverse and shackled and unshackled hands on the reverse."

"To honor women’s suffrage, a World War I-era protester carrying a 'Votes for Women' flag. And to evoke the civil rights movement, a 6-year-old Ruby Bridges, books in hand, helping to desegregate the New Orleans school system in 1960. [Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, authorized by law to make final decisions about coin designs] opted instead for the more general, and much whiter. For the Mayflower Compact, a Pilgrim couple staring into the distance. For the Revolutionary War, a profile of Washington. For the Declaration of Independence, a profile of Thomas Jefferson. For the Constitution, a profile of James Madison. And for the Gettysburg Address, a profile of Lincoln on the obverse, and on the reverse, a pair of interlocking hands. No shackles."

From "The War on ‘Wokeness’ Comes to the U.S. Mint/The Treasury Department unveiled new coins celebrating America’s 250th anniversary. They failed to include planned designs featuring abolition, women’s suffrage and the civil rights movement" (NYT).

It does seem that the celebration of the 250th anniversary should concentrate on things that happened around 250 years ago, not on later events, but even Bessent's 5 choices include 2 that are not from the era of the founding. The Mayflower Compact is over a century earlier, and the Gettysburg Address is almost a century later. 

This sentence bothered me: "Mr. Bessent opted instead for the more general, and much whiter." What's with the comma? I'd get rid of it and replace it with either nothing or an em dash. Or put "and much whiter" in parentheses.

You can see Bessent's coins here, and go here to see what the committee recommended, including this:

Those shackles! (And that fist.)

Are negative things put on coins?

ADDED: I believe it has been the practice of the U.S. government, throughout its history, never to put something negative on a coin. Consider the history of the "Chain cent" of 1793. It showed a 15-link chain that was meant to represent the 15 states, but after some people interpreted the chain to mean slavery, it was replaced. It only lasted from February to March of 1793. The idea that it might depict something negative was enough to kill it. The tradition of positivity should be recognized and adhered to — especially for a coin that celebrates an anniversary.