The Statue of Liberty, and what she means to me
The Statue of Liberty
National Monument
http://www.nps.gov/stli/
Beautiful, isn’t she?
Lady Liberty has been standing in New York harbor for 121 years now, a beacon of hope and welcoming to millions of mostly poor and destitute immigrants, seeking a better life in America, whether they were fleeing poverty, persecution, tyranny, or all three.
Early on, most of these immigrants came from Europe, and so they journeyed to our country by ship, across the tempestuous Atlantic, more often than not, in the foul, cramped, disease-ridden steerage sections, deep within the bowels of their vessels. After many days—and sometimes, weeks –at sea, they’d wake one morning, and climb to the ship’s main deck to see the answer to their prayers: The Statue of Liberty, a welcoming symbol of all their hopes and dreams. Here they were, in America, at last, where the streets were paved with gold, where their labors would be appreciated, where their bellies would no longer ache from hunger, where they could have the freedom to worship as they wished, and where they could speak their minds without fear.
Of course, many of their ideas were unrealistic—the waves of Irish, Italian, and Eastern European immigrants still faced persecution here, still had cause to fear speaking their minds, still went hungry, still found their labors unappreciated –but America gave them a chance they did not have in “the old country,” and they persevered, made gains bit-by-bit, earning US greenbacks the hard way, and, through our free public school system, saw their children or grandchildren rise into the ranks of the middle-class. Joseph Califano (former US Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare), Robert Gallo (the first man to isolate and identify HIV), Ruth Bader Ginsburg (US Supreme Court Justice), Malcolm Forbes (millionaire publishing magnate), Mary McGrory (Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist), George Pataki (former governor of New York), and Irving Berlin (the songwriter who penned “God Bless America”) are/were all poor European emigrants or children of poor European emigrants.
The Statue of Liberty called-out to all these peoples, cried-out “Come hither… America wants you, America needs you, America offers you the chance of a lifetime”—
“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…”
But September 11, 2001 changed all that. Immigrants—now no longer predominantly European –are seen as threats. We hear that they could be “terrorists,” that they sap our national treasury, that they won’t learn English, that they take our jobs and depress our wages, and heavens-above (!), that they send money out of the United States to their families in the “old country.”
Let’s set the record straight:
- 15 of the 19 skyjackers on 9-11-01 were from
Saudi Arabia (the other four hailed from the United Arab Emirates and
Lebanon)—not one of them was from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nigeria,
Iraq, or Afghanistan;
- Today’s immigrants pay taxes, just as did
yesterday’s immigrants. At the very
least, they are paying sales taxes.
At the most, they are also paying income taxes, unemployment insurance taxes, and social security taxes. Those deemed “illegal” often use phony
social security cards to gain employment and will never get to see a penny
back from the taxes they pay in. If
you think “Illegals” are depleting our treasury, take a good look at the
defense and supplementary military budgets first (according to the Congressional
Budget Office, the cost of the war in Iraq, alone, today stands at $466,092,816,702,
or $30 million per hour);
- Hey, you descendants of European immigrants out
there! How many of you remember a
first-generation relative who just couldn’t learn English? A mother, a grandfather, an aunt or
uncle? We all remember at
least one (unless, of course, our families already came from an
English-speaking country). English
is a tough language to learn—ask any linguist –but even if the
first-generation couldn’t or didn’t speak it, eventually, their children
(you, me, our parents) did;
- Our jobs are gone and our wages are depressed
because of the so-called “Free Trade” deals championed and enacted by the
last three US Presidents—George W. Bush (R), Bill Clinton (D), and George
H. W. Bush (R) –and the last 12 Congresses. Schemes such as NAFTA, GATT, and FTAA
replace well-paying jobs in America
with low-paying ones in Mexico,
Guatemala, Singapore, China,
India, and Indonesia. The factories here close, the towns dependent
on those factories and jobs lose tax-base and revenue, small businesses
close, and—Voila! –the Walmarts and Burger Kings arrive, paying minimum
wage to all those folks who have families to feed. And if you think that once all those
poor Mexicans are forced off the farms, field-hand wages will go up,
consider the fact that your food costs will also rise, that is, until they
fully robotize the agricultural process… or, more likely just close-down
the fields and sell the land to developers, instead (but then their costs
will also rise without the reservoir of cheap immigrant workers to build
their homes, malls, and offices);
- Find out about your own family history and you’ll probably learn that—in all likelihood –your immigrant ancestors did exactly as today’s immigrants do—they sent money back to their families in the “old country” so as to help make ends meet and to gradually put enough away to pay for their passage to America in order to reunite here and start putting down roots in their newly adoptive country.
Reflect, for a moment, upon how
you would feel if, instead of taking down the twin towers, the skyjackers had
slammed into the Statue of Liberty. Would
you be angry? Of course you would! Would
you grieve for the dead? Certainly! Would you mourn the loss of so great a symbol
of America?
How couldn’t you! Now, think about what it would have meant to
destroy her. It would have been a dagger
into the heart of the American promise to all the world, the offer of refuge,
shelter, and freedom to anyone coming to our land, no matter how wretched they
may be: “… Send these, the homeless,
tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”
-----------------------
THE NEW COLOSSUS (1883)
By Emma Lazarus (1849-1887)
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!”
--------------------------------
Interesting facts about the Statue of Liberty
(from the US National Park Service)
Direction: The Statue faces Southeast in perfect symmetry with the placement of Fort Wood and how people would see the Statue while entering the harbor.
Torch: a symbol of enlightenment. The current torch is a 1986 replacement of the original, now in the lobby. The new torch is copper, covered in 24k. gold leaf. Sunlight reflects off the gold during the daytime and floodlights (16), light the torch by reflection at night.
Crown: There are 25 windows in the crown which symbolize gemstones and the heaven's rays shining over the world.
Rays of Crown: The seven rays represent the seven seas and continents of the world.
Chains: chains and a broken shackle are at the Statue's feet and cannot be seen from below. This symbolizes the Statue as a goddess free from oppression and servitude.
==========================
I've written the above rant in response to two anti-immigrant/illegal aliens emails I've recently received from people I care about. I have found one reprehensible (the first below), and-- after responding to it and getting a very unpleasant reply --have since blocked further emails from the sender. The second purports to be a list of facts (they aren't), and tells us that the cost-effective solution to our illegal alien problem is mass deportation. God, this stuff sounds so Nazi, doesn't it?
And it must be addressed. I hope what I've written can help others to respond when they get these types of emails from people they care about, as did I.See reprinted emails below:
Exhibit A.
<<
HELLO! THIS IS AMERICA!
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma School officials remove "God Bless America" signs from schools in fear that someone might be offended.
Channel 12 News in Long Island, New York, orders flags removed from the newsroom and red, white, and blue ribbons removed from the lapels of reporters. Why? Management did not want to appear biased and felt that our nations flag might give the appearance that "they lean one way or another"
Berkeley, California bans US Flags from being displayed on city fire trucks because they didn't want to offend anyone in the community.
In an "act of tolerance," the head of the public library at Florida Gulf Coast University ordered all "Proud to be an American" signs removed so as to not offend international students.
I, for one, am quite disturbed by these actions of so-called American citizens; and I am tired of this nation worrying about whether or not we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on September 11, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Americans. However, the dust from the attacks had barely settled in New York and Washington D.C. when the "politically correct" crowd began complaining about the possibility that our patriotism was offending others.
I am not against immigration, nor do I hold a grudge against anyone who is seeking a better life by coming to America. In fact, our country's population is almost entirely composed of descendants of immigrants; however, there are a few things that those who have recently come to our country, and apparently some native Americans, need to understand.
First of all, it is not our responsibility to continually try not to offend you in any way. This idea of America being a multi-cultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Americans, we have our own culture, our own society, our own language and our own lifestyle. This culture, called the "American Way" has been developed over centuries of struggles, trials, and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom. Our forefathers fought, bled, and died at places such as Bunker Hill, Antietam, San Juan, Iwo Jima, Normandy, Korea, Vietnam, and the Persian Gulf, for our way of life.
We speak English, not Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society — learn our language!
"In God We Trust" is our national motto. This is not some off-the-wall, Christian, Right Wing, political slogan — it is our national motto. It is engraved in stone in the House of Representatives in our Capitol and it is printed on our currency. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation; and this is clearly documented throughout our history. If it is appropriate for our motto to be inscribed in the halls of our highest level of Government, then it is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools.
God is in our pledge, our National Anthem, nearly every patriotic song, and in our founding documents. We honor His birth, death, and resurrection as holidays, and we turn to Him in prayer in times of crisis. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture and we are proud to have Him.
We are proud of our heritage and those who have so honorably defended our freedoms. We celebrate Independence Day, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Flag Day. We have parades, picnics, and barbecues where we proudly wave our flag. As an American, I have the right to wave my flag, sing my national anthem, quote my national motto, and cite my pledge whenever and wherever I choose. If the Stars and Stripes offend you, or you don't like Uncle Sam, then you should seriously consider a move to another part of this planet.
The American culture is our way of life, our heritage, and we are proud of it. We are happy with our culture and have no desire to change, and we really don't care how you did things where you came from. We are Americans, like it or not, this is our country, our land, and our lifestyle.
Our First Amendment gives every citizen the right to express his opinion about our government, culture, or society, and we will allow you every opportunity to do so. But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about our flag, our pledge, our national motto, or our way of life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great American freedom, the right to leave.
If you agree, pass this onto other Americans!!
It is time to take a stand!!
MAY GOD BLESS AMERICA
LAND THAT WE LOVE!!!
Exhibit B.
<<
The following was reported by the Associated Press last March. Now if only the US Congress would stop playing partisan politics and do something worth while.
Well, it passed! Oklahoma is no longer OK for Illegal Aliens....... It seems that at least one state has decided to take matters into it's own hands, since the Federal Government keeps dragging it's feet on this Illegal alien stuff and even reversing popular opinion on how to handle it. BRAVO OKLAHOMA! (Too bad all politicians don't have the 'guts' to do this)
Every State needs to do this!!!!
Oklahoma's Governor Brad Henry has signed a sweeping immigration Reform bill: House Bill 1804, that its sponsor believes will go a long way in dealing with the illegal alien problem in the state.
House Bill 1804 was passed by overwhelming majorities in both the House and Senate of the Oklahoma Legislature. The measure's sponsor, State Representative Randy Terrill, says the bill has four main topical areas: it deals with identity theft; it terminates public assistance benefits to illegal; it empowers state and local police to enforce federal immigration laws; and it punishes employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens.
Oklahoma is no longer "O.K." for illegal aliens, Terrill observes. "When you put everything together in context," he contends, "the bottom line is ille gal aliens will not come here if there are no jobs waiting for them, they will not stay here if there is no government subsidy, and they certainly won't stay here if they know that if they ever encounter our state and local law enforcement officers, they will be physically detained until they're deported. And that's exactly what House Bill 1804 does."
The Oklahoma legislator is pleased the bill he sponsored into law was signed by Governor Henry and believes it will go a long way to curb the illegal immigration problem in the state. "I would remind people that states are separate sovereigns in our federal system," Terrill points out, "Anyone who doesn't understand that needs to go back and take an American federal government class in college," he says.
As a result of that sovereignty, the Oklahoma lawmaker insists, "Wehave as much right - in fact, I would argue, a responsibility - to protect our tax payers against that sort of egregious waste, fraud and abuse as the federal government should have a responsibility to protect that international border, but doesn't do that."
Terrill says as long as the federal government refuses to do its job of
protecting the international borders of the United States, states like Oklahoma must take action to deal with the problem that is costing taxpayers in the state $200 billion a year in public benefits, law enforcement costs, and other resources.
14 GOOD REASONS TO DEPORT ILLEGAL ALIENS (websites provided for verification)
Hope these 14 reasons are forwarded over and over again until they are read by the majority of Americans. Then they will have something to yell at their U.S. Congress members. $11 Billion to $22 billion is spent on welfare to illegal aliens each year. http://tinyurl.com/zob77 <http://tinyurl.com/zob77>
1. $2.2 Billion dollars a year is spent on food assistance programs such as food stamps, WIC, and free school lunches for illegal aliens. http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/fiscalexec.html <http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/fiscalexec.html>
2. $2.5 Billion dollars a year is spent on Medicaid for illegal aliens. http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/fiscalexec.html <http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/fiscalexec.html>
3. $12 Billion dollars a year is spent on primary and secondary school education for children here illegally and they cannot speak a word of English! http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.0.html <http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.0.html>
4. $17 Billion dollars a year is spent for education for the American-born
5. children of illegal aliens, known as anchor babies. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html <ht tp://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html>
6. $3 Million Dollars a DAY is spent to incarcerate illegal aliens. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html <http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html>
7. 30% of all Federal Prison inmates are illegal aliens. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/06 <http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/06> 04/01/ldt.01.html
8. $90 Billion Dollars a year is spent on illegal aliens for Welfare & social services by the American taxpayers. http://premium.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0610/29/ldt.01.html <http://premium.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0610/29/ldt.01.html>
9. $200 Billion Dollars a year in suppressed American wages are caused by the illegal aliens. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html <http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html>
10. The illegal aliens in the United States have a crime rate that's two and a half times that of white non-illegal aliens. In particular, their children, are going to make a huge additional crime problem in the United States http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0606/12/ldt.01.html <http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0606/12/ldt.01.html>
11. During the year of 2005 there were 4 to 10 MILLION illegal aliens that crossed our Southern Border also, as many as 19,500 illegal aliens from
12. Terrorist Countries. Millions of pounds of drugs, cocaine, meth, heroine and marijuana, crossed into the U. S. from the Southern border. Homeland Security Report: http://tinyurl.com/t9sht< /A> <http://tinyurl.com/t9sht>
13. The National Policy Institute "estimated that the total cost of mass deportation would be between $206 and $230 billion or an average cost of between $41 and $46 billion annually over a five year period." http://www.nationalpolicyinstitute.org/pdf/deportation.pdf <http://www.nationalpolicyinstitute.org/pdf/deportation.pdf& gt;
14. In 2006 illegal aliens sent home $45 BILLION in remittances back to their countries of origin. http://www.rense.com/general75/niht.htm <http://www.rense.com/general75/niht.htm>
So if deporting them costs between $206 and $230 BILLION DOLLARS, Start getting rid of em.' We'll be ahead after the 1st year!!!
To say nothing of the extra cost of printing EVERYTHING in multiple languages. This bill should also include the requirement that aliens speak ENGLISH.
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