This week, a Democratic House of Representatives member proposed the idea of dismantling the Statue of Liberty during a discussion on immigration issues. Although the feasibility of such a proposal is highly unlikely, it comes in the wake of the removal or destruction of various statues portraying aspects of American history.
Representative Maxwell Frost, a Democrat from Florida, put forward this proposal while participating in a House Oversight Committee hearing on immigration. Frost voiced his disapproval of the Secure the Border Act introduced by congressional Republicans. In the course of the discussion, he displayed a significant image of the Statue of Liberty, asserting that Republicans were advocating for a discriminatory bill.
He remarked that should Republicans turn away immigrants, the removal of the Statue of Liberty would be fitting. He referred to the statue as our foremost symbol, signaling an invitation for people to come to the United States.
The youthful Democrat asserted that such a suggestion would unveil the genuine intentions of Republicans, accusing them of eroding the essence of America. He proceeded to inquire which Republican in Congress backing the proposed immigration bill would initiate a bill for the removal of the statue. He contended that any member not advocating for the statue’s removal while endorsing the revised bill was being deceptive.
Are you FOR or AGAINST removing the Statue of Liberty? pic.twitter.com/p1GvFJaY14
— Dr. Jebra Faushay (@JebraFaushay) January 20, 2024
Several monuments and statues have been demolished or taken down following pressure from left-leaning activists since 2020. This includes the recent obliteration of a statue portraying Confederate General Robert E. Lee in Virginia, where the statue was melted down.
In 2022, a statue depicting former President Theodore Roosevelt was taken down from its location outside the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Numerous other monuments were also removed in response to the Black Lives Matter protests occurring nationwide.
Alongside the removal of statues, several memorials and monuments have faced vandalism in recent years. Instances include the defacement of a statue of Abraham Lincoln in New York City and various sites in Washington D.C.
More recently, pro-Palestinian protesters defaced both a veterans cemetery in Los Angeles and the New York Public Library.
