Celia Cruz becomes first Afro-Latina to appear on U.S. quarter

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Cuban-American singer Celia Cruz, who died in 2003, is the first Afro-Latina to appear on the U.S. quarter issued by the United States Mint.

The coin was presented last Thursday on the institution’s website.

Cruz is the 14th woman to receive this tribute as part of the American Women Quarters program, which was launched in 2022. Other women who have received this distinction include writer and activist Maya Angelou, former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and Mexican American journalist Jovita Idar.

The coin shows an image of Cruz smiling with her iconic phrase: “¡Azúcar!”. The other side has an image of George Washington, designed by artist Laura Gardin Fraser in 1932 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of America’s first president.

The American Women Quarters program will continue through 2025 and aims to honor the advancements and contributions of women to the United States.

The U.S. Embassy in Cuba celebrated the milestone. “Let’s celebrate this historic moment and the legacy of the Queen of Salsa,” it said in a statement posted in Spanish on X.

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