Anna May Wong Is the First Asian American on the New U.S. Quarter
Anna May Wong will be the first Asian American to be pictured on a piece of United States currency. The late actress will be featured on the quarter-dollar coin.
Wong is recognized as the first Asian American movie star in Hollywood. She had an extensive career as an actress but faced much adversity and xenophobia. Asian discrimination was extremely present when her career took off in the 1920s.
#HerQuarter https://t.co/tAUEL71YE4
— United States Mint (@usmint) October 18, 2022
She was cast as a villainous character in many of her roles because of her race. Wong was interviewed by the Los Angeles Times in 1933 when she expressed her disappointment in this repeated casting. The actress stated, “I was so tired of the parts I had to play. Why is it that the screen Chinese is nearly always the villain of the piece, and so cruel a villain–murderous, treacherous, a snake in the grass. We are not like that.”
After growing tired of villainous roles, Wong moved to Europe. She launched an extremely successful career overseas, acting in German, English, and French films and stage productions.
In 2021, the United States Mint launched the American Women Quarters Program, which included Wong as one of the program’s notable figures. From 2022 through 2025, five coins will be released. Each coin will feature a different woman who made a significant impact on American history.
Maya Angelou, Sally Ride, Nina Otero Warren, Wilma Mankiller, and Anna May Wong will be featured in the first batch of quarters. Wong is the fifth and final coin from the first batch. Wong’s coins will begin shipping Monday, October 24.
