When Patricia Okoumou, an immigrant from the Democratic Republic of Congo, scaled the Statue of Liberty on the Fourth of July to protest Donald Trump’s immigration policies, it put the spotlight on Lady Liberty and all of her symbolism. Here are seven facts about monument, which sits in the New York Harbor and averages 20,000 tourists every Independence Day.
- The Statue of Liberty Was The Brainchild of an Abolitionist
Lady Liberty was a gift from France to the United States in 1886. But it was Edouard de Laboulaye, a U.S. Constitution expert, French political leader and the president of the French Anti-Slavery Society who conceived of the gift. He saw it as not only a celebration of America’s victory over slavery, but also a protest against France’s repression.
