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+--- Thread: How the Statue of Liberty became a symbol for a national myth (/thread-11212.html)
How the Statue of Liberty became a symbol for a national myth - C C - Oct 30, 2021
More precisely, it's probably those who make appeals to this [bogus] secular, sacred spirit of the SoL -- when arguing for open borders -- that need to be reminded that the statue had nothing to do with immigration. Emma Lazarus' poem "The New Colossus" was itself only a donation made to a funding effort for the pedestal's construction; and Lazarus had to be persuaded to do it, since she originally rejected a request to write it. Afterwards, the poem was forgotten for many years, before meanderingly winding up on the plaque in 1903.
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How the Statue of Liberty became a symbol for a national myth
https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2021/10/29/statue-of-liberty-symbol-for-a-national-myth/
INTRO: For many Americans, the Statue of Liberty, dedicated 135 years ago this month, is an enduring symbol of the idea that the United States is a nation of immigrants. Lady Liberty’s torch was the first image of America for millions of immigrants arriving at Ellis Island. Emma Lazarus’ immortal words, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore” are etched into a plaque on its base and into the collective memory of Americans. However, despite the symbolic power of the statue and the sincere belief that the US is a nation of immigrants, neither of these stories we tell ourselves about what it means to be an American is actually true.
The transformation of the meaning of the Statue of Liberty illustrates how Americans often misremember our history. The original purpose of the statue was to commemorate the end of slavery and the country’s centennial. It had nothing to do with immigration.
Similarly, the United States was never a country that allowed completely open immigration, particularly for non-White immigrants. The history of U.S. immigration policy is one of ever-expanding restrictions and deportations of the poor and huddled masses, from Chinese Exclusion through the rapid removal of over 10,000 Haitians last month.
Even before the Statue of Liberty was dedicated in 1886, the United States had begun to close the door on non-White and poor immigrants. The country did not have any federal immigration restrictions until 1875, but many states set up their own limits. Massachusetts and New York implemented limits on poor and sick immigrants, Southern states banned the entry of free Blacks at their ports, and California set limits on the entry of the Chinese after the Gold Rush. The Supreme Court invalidated these state-level immigration laws in 1849 and again in 1875.
That same year, Congress passed the Page Act, the country’s first national immigration restriction on Chinese laborers and women. In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned the entry of all Chinese immigrants. Sen. John Miller of California said on the Senate floor, “Of Chinese, we have enough and would be glad to exchange those we have for any White people under the sun.” In 1882, Congress also passed a separate immigration act that banned “convicts, idiots, lunatics, or any person unable to take care of himself or herself without becoming a public charge.”
The idea for the Statue of Liberty originated from a conversation between slavery abolitionist Édouard René de Laboulaye and the sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi in 1865. Bartholdi designed the copper statue and entitled it Liberty Enlightening the World. The metal frame was made by Gustave Eiffel, whose tower at the 1889 Universal Exposition in Paris would cement his name into the identity of the city. Liberty Enlightening the World depicts the Roman goddess of liberty, libertas, who holds a tablet with July 4, 1776, written in Roman numerals. At her feet lay a broken shackle and chains to symbolize the end of slavery... (MORE)
RE: How the Statue of Liberty became a symbol for a national myth - Syne - Oct 30, 2021
Some people actually believe that poem is part of the Declaration or Constitution. Our history/civics education is crap, by the design of Democrats. Aside from those of us who can trace our lineage to the Revolutionary War, we are a country of immigrants. But it was a "melting pot," where everyone once came to share in the same ideals, patriotism, self-sufficiency, etc.. We were never interested in people coming with ready made grievances or with a hand out.
RE: How the Statue of Liberty became a symbol for a national myth - Magical Realist - Oct 30, 2021
If there can be traced any moment when the Statue of Liberty assumed the status of a welcoming mother to impoverished immigrants, it was when the poem by Emma Lazarus was penned and mounted onto the statue itself. See if you pick up any vibes of that interpretation from the poem itself:
The New Colossus
"Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
As with all sculpted monuments, the Statue of Liberty represents an ideal, not a reality. It calls upon all Americans to take this stance towards their country and to those who would immigrate here. It's a hope. It's a prayer that the better angels of our natures might prevail and embrace all outcasts as fellow citizens in this land of infinite opportunity.