Issue What values does the Statue of Liberty represent? Starter The New Colossus (1883) by Emma Lazarus Inscribed on the Statue of Liberty in 1903 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!" Focus Questions What ideas or values come to your mind when you visualize the Statue of Liberty? The New Colossus ends "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!" What view of immigrants to America does this suggest to you? What do you think the Statue of Liberty means to immigrants coming to America today? How do immigrants become Americans? Today, in the aftermath of September 11, 2001, how might you rewrite an inscription for the Statue of Liberty? What would it say? For whom would it be written? Symbols of America Pathway: 1  2  3  4  5  All (.pdf) Note: The views expressed here have not been approved by the House of Delegates or the Board of Governors of the American Bar Association, and accordingly, should not be construed as representing the policy of the American Bar Association, nor do they represent the official position or policies of the ABA Standing Committee on Public Education.