Telling the truth in D.C.

Telling the truth in D.C.

Washington Post: New Hampshire has “Live Free or Die,” and Pennsylvania goes by “Virtue, Liberty, Independence.” So, it’s only fitting that the soon-to-be-minted District of Columbia quarter be engraved with the slogan that declares the defining fact of life in the nation’s capital: “Taxation Without Representation.”

New quarter

This week D.C. officials will submit to the U.S. Mint their ideas for the design of the new quarter. D.C. Secretary Stephanie D. Scott, who is heading up the effort for Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, told us that the city is allowed to submit three concepts and that each will include “Taxation Without Representation.” The phrase, which appears on license plates in the District, was the most requested item from residents making suggestions about what should appear on the reverse of the coin, which will be minted in 2009.

Nothing in the criteria set out by the Mint precludes the slogan. Indeed, the Mint urges designs “that promote the diffusion of knowledge among the youth of the United States about the state, its history and geography, and the rich diversity of our national heritage. Priority consideration will be given to designs that are enduring representations of the state.” What’s more enduring than the city’s disenfranchisement?