I loved reading her interview. I agree with a lot of what she said. She has a good handle on things. I will keep an eye out for her book to give to my favorite historian and then read myself. Great job KM.

 
Pearl sent this to me the other day. Nice coverage!


Lady Liberty Celebrates Her Birthday
On Thursday, one day before the 125th birthday celebration of the Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island, the rain poured so long and so heavily, we thought there’d be a repeat of what happened in 1886.  That year, when the Statue was first dedicated, when President Grover Cleveland accepted the gift of the Statue from France, the scene was electric.  Crowds gathered for the flotilla and dramatic parade of 300 ships passing in the harbor, but visibility was so bad, less than a quarter of a nautical mile on the water, some of the events were cancelled.  The fog and rain lasted all day.  Fireworks planned for that night after of the October 28th dedication were postponed to November 1st.
But on this day, Friday, at 10 a.m., the sky was clear.  The sun warmed New York Harbor, and the Lady’s gilded gold leafed torch shone in the sky above the passing ferries.  The events proceeded as planned, even the Macy’s fireworks that night, which were a spectacular display that spread bursts of color and sound on the river.  In a midday event, a flotilla of commercial and private boats circled and saluted Lady Liberty.  
The morning’s events brought Broadway, City Hall, Washington D.C., New York, Brooklyn and West Point together in celebration of a Statue’s 125th birthday.
On Liberty Island, in a crowded tent in the plaza at the flagpole, a crowd gathered and enjoyed the festivities.  In the crisp October air, the tent was warm, lit by the sun and warmed with heaters.  I wanted to talk with some New Yorkers about the event.  Amid hundreds of tourists, many from France, it seemed like it would be a challenge finding Downtowners, but find them I did.  After the event, I rode the Liberty Island ferry with Dr. Ruth, the sex therapist.  She was ecstatic.  She said the ceremony was “very moving.”  In her excited voice, she explained that when she arrived in the United States as an immigrant fifty-five years ago in 1956, she travelled 4th class.  She pointed her finger below deck.  “I stayed up all night to see the Statue of Liberty when we arrived,” she said.  “And look at me now, I’m Dr. Ruth.”
Dr. Ruth Westheimer was escorted on the Liberty Island ferry by Dr. David Marwell, the director of the Museum of Jewish Heritage at 36 Battery Place at the tip of Manhattan Island.  “I can see the Statue of Liberty from my office,” he said.  “That experience gives power to the story we tell.”  While waiting to board the ferry, which stopped at Liberty Island and Ellis Island, I also spoke with the two musicians who play the sunny, tropical, carnival-style Trinidadian steel drums for visitors to Battery Park.  On this day, they played “Happy Birthday,” “New York, New York,” “America the Beautiful,” and other celebratory songs.  When I asked about the Statue, Curtis, who danced to his steel drum’s rhythms as he played, said, “It’s beautiful.  I love it.  Love the people as well.”  His fellow musician, sounding like a reggae songwriter, said, “She represents peace and freedom, mon.  A symbol the world can live as one.”
These New Yorkers echoed the sentiments and celebration that showered the formal events on Liberty Island. The high point of the events, midway through the performances, speeches, and dramatic readings, was the launching of the five webcams that now show the Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor.  The designers of the webcam counted down to the launching of the webcams, which can now be seen on Earthcam  and Ellis Island TorchCam.  They call the streaming cam, “Earthcam, Enlightening the World Wide Web.”  I described the webcam in a recent report on my blog, The Statue of Liberty Goes Live on Internet Webcams.
As the talents came together, the West Point Band played marches, concluding with “Hail the Spirit of Liberty.”  Under the sunny tent, the West Point Glee Club harmonized songs, including the “Battle Hymn of the Republic”  --  “Glory, glory, hallelujah!”  The band and glee club rendered a lively “American the Beautiful”  --  “O beautiful of spacious skies, / For amber waves of grain, / For purple mountain majesties / Above the fruited plain!”  And when the actress and singer, Capathia Jenkins, belted the soul-stirring high notes of the national anthem, the “Star Spangled Banner,” the audience shouted, “Wow!” as it cheered.
Then when the singer and actress, Anika Noni Rose, belted the newly recorded Doug Katsaros and William Schermerhorn, “Gift of Light,” in a duet with the musical performer, Gay Marshall, this celebration of America and France came together.  Anika Noni Rose, star of Tyler Perry’s “For Colored Girls” sang alongside Gay Marshall, star of “A Chorus Line,” who sang in French. The lyrics were vivid: “Lady Liberty stands there upon the shore; // . . . The lady gives the gift of light / That keeps a nation shining bright -- / That keeps a land forever … forever free. // She stands there beside the sea.”
The performers were not all from Broadway; the Brooklyn High School of the Arts Choir performed “Huddled Masses” from the Broadway musical, “LIBERTY – a Monumental New Musical,” and their young voices soared.  A bird must have heard the notes, for at that moment, a bird landed on the roof of the tent.  
A dramatic reading by actress Sigourney Weaver, star of the “Alien” films, breathed movement, hand gestures and emotion into the 1883 poem, “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus.  When she dramatized, “Here at the sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand / A mighty woman with a torch,” she pointed to the Statue of Liberty.  “Give me your tired, your poor, / Your huddled masses yearning to be free, / The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.”  Inside the tent, a few feet from Lady Liberty, the audience was treated to reminders of the nation’s talents and dreams.
The multi-talented entertainer, singer and keyboardist, Michael Feinstein, M.C.ed and entertained with “C’est Magnfique,” a French composer’s “How Do You Keep the Music Playing,” before concluding the program with “God Bless America,” accompanied by the audience. Irving Berlin would have been proud as the audience joined in singing, “Stand beside her, and guide her / Thru the night with a light from above.”  It was daylight at the Statue of Liberty.    
I write about New York’s history, because with post-p/11 health issues, I do not explore the city as much as I used to do.  But taking the time and effort to travel to this celebration was certainly worth doing.
Then there were speakers who represented Liberty Island, City Hall and the President.  The speakers said this event was not only a celebration but a reflection.  The Superintendent of the Statue of Liberty said when they give tours of the monument, the tour guides see “Monument Enlightening the World,” the name of Bartholdi’s work of art, reflected in the faces of visitors.  
Ken Salazar, the Secretary of the Interior, represented the President.  He said President Barack Obama is dedicated to rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and monuments.  The Director of the National Park Service echoed the points about the nation’s diverse population and the importance and strength of diversity.  He said the nation’s monuments, including the recently dedicated, Martin Luther King Memorial, reflect its long-running democracy and diversity.  And as the monuments are renewed, they celebrate liberty and tell the story of all of America.  The Interior Department will be spending $27.25 million to renovate the Statue of Liberty.  During the renovations, Liberty Island will be open to the public.
The speakers echoed renewal and rebuilding, but it was Mayor Michael Bloomberg who drove the point home.  He said, “Too often we look at the mistakes we make in this country instead of what we do right.”  He presented Liberty Island with an original replica of the Statue donated by Coca-Cola, which is also celebrating its 125th anniversary. In a gift and clever stroke of marketing promotion, Coca-Cola’s replica celebrates the nation and greets the four million annual visitors to Liberty Island.  
The event celebrated renewal, reflection, liberty, highlighting the positive not the negative.  Mayor Bloomberg could have been speaking about himself, for when he said France’s President Sarkozy visited Liberty Island, looked up at Lady Liberty and said, “C’est magnifique,” the Mayor’s French accent sounded much better than his much-teased Spanish enunciation.
When a French representative and President Grover Cleveland’s grandson, George Cleveland, were presented with gift plaques, both speakers, one in French and one in English, said thank you’s, pointing out that liberty was still vital in world.  George Cleveland said in 1886, his grandfather, President Cleveland, was prescient when he said, “a stream of light shall pierce the darkness of ignorance and man's oppression, until liberty enlightens the world.”  George Cleveland said, “We are still a work in progress.”  When he mentioned that this is the first time he had even visited the Statue of Liberty, and the audience laughed.  
Even for this anniversary event and the rest of the day, there were more tourists from around the country, and the world, than there were New Yorkers visiting Liberty Island Park.  The Park not only houses a monument, it is a great place to picnic and relax. Friday was sunny but cool on the harbor and snow headed to New York’s tri-state harbors on Saturday.      



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/02/2011 01:32PM by askanewyorker.