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“Educate a woman, and you educate a family.” ~Jovita Idar
Jovita Idar was a proud Mexican American, powerful journalist, influential teacher, volunteer nurse, and political and civil rights activist. She was appalled at her community's injustices and used her platform to call for action. She rallied her community and used her words to unite people for a greater purpose.
Idar grew up in a family where education was valued, and open conversation about racial and social justice was encouraged. After school, she got her teaching license and began teaching at a small school for Mexican Americans. She ended up resigning in outrage over the lack of resources and the forced segregation of her students. Even though she tried, she couldn't improve the conditions for her students and was frustrated that it was keeping her from having a real impact.
After resigning, Idar started working for her father's newspaper, La Crónica, which wrote stories sharing community news, calling for activism, and highlighting the social and economic inequalities and educational discrimination faced by Mexican Americans. They published multiple articles discussing the loss of Hispanic culture and the forced decrease of Spanish language use. While writing for the paper, Idar discovered her words could make a real difference in the world; they held real power. She started writing about the racism her people faced and exposed the poor living conditions of the Mexican American workers.
Idar's family also organized the first Mexican Congress to help unify Mexican Americans to fight against the injustices they faced. She founded her own organization under this new Congress, La Liga Feminism Mexicaista, The League of Mexican Women. She had become incredibly passionate about women's suffrage and encouraged women to vote. The League's goal was to unite Mexican women in community and activism. They worked to transform injustices into plans of action. Their first mission was to improve the education available to Mexican American students. They raised money to provide adequate school resources, fought against segregation, and advocated for bilingual education. They believed your race should not impact your access to quality education.
During the Mexican Revolution, Idar traveled to the border to help care for the injured, serving as a nurse. She was disappointed by her experiences there, so she began working for the newspaper El Progresso. There, she wrote an article calling out President Woodrow Wilson's decision to send US troops to the border. This article outraged the Army and Texas Rangers, who showed up to the office to shut the paper down. Idar stood in the doorway and refused to move or let them in. Unfortunately, they returned that night after she had left and destroyed everything in the building, shutting the paper down.
That experience didn't deter Idar from continuing to advocate for fair treatment of Mexican Americans. After her father died, she took over the family newspaper, La Crónica, and started a new weekly paper, Evolución. She eventually moved to San Antonio, where she became the editor of a publication for the Methodist church, El Heraldo Christiano, and opened a free kindergarten school. She spent the rest of her life writing, volunteering as an interpreter at a local hospital, and speaking up for what was right.
The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) discussed the plans for the Jovita Idar Quarter at their meeting on April 19, 2022. There was a lot of disagreement over whether or not this design would spark the public's curiosity. Some of the committee members felt that the simplicity of the design would cause the public to overlook it when coming across it in change. Others disagreed, saying the atypical nature of the design would draw your attention to it. Many members said this was one of the greatest coin designs they had seen in a while.
Jovita Idar was a woman of words, and this design visually represents how everything she fought for made her who she was. The words that make up her body include the various publications she worked for and the titles she has earned, such as journalist, teacher, and nurse. All the required wording is also uniquely included in her body, leaving the fields strikingly blank. Some committee members were worried about losing her name in the sea of words, but it was struck incuse, giving it contrast against everything else and drawing your eyes right to it.