Another thought "From a friend"

The Old New Colossus

Have you ever heard of a poem called, “The New Colossus”? No? Didn’t think so. Have you ever heard of Emma Lazarus? It’s ok if you haven’t; not many people remember her. She wrote that poem. Not many people remember it either except for one line out of it. I only bring it up because you’ll likely be hearing that one line a lot in the wake of the colossal can of worms that our boy Trump has opened.

In case you’ve been busy in the last 72 hours let me recap: Donald Trump would like to temporarily ban all immigration into the US by Muslims. If you follow the will of Allah, you will not be welcome here. The usual parties and even some unusual ones got all upset of course. There’s been much clutching of pearls and wadding up of panties. Someone at the White House dug out a dictionary and hit on the term, “vacuous” to describe Trump’s plan.

They also flung in a snipe about him having “fake hair”. Whoa. Talk about hitting below the hair line.

At any rate, I should be most surprised if by now some talk show pundit, like one of those aging boards on “The View,” or some talking head on the news hasn’t recited that one line of “The New Colossus” to make their point in how evil they feel Trump is.

With eyes raised to the sky, hand over heart, and we all know they have so much more heart than you or I, they will strike a profound pose and recite:

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…”

With those words dripping from their lips, they’ll assume the air of a warrior of justice, who, with those magic words have yielded the sword of truth against Trump and his supporters. Racist, bigots go away! Poof!

All they’ve really done is parrot an overused line from a piece that’s outlived its usefulness.

Yeah, I said that. I just went there. If you have any beads to clutch, grab ‘em now ‘cause I’m about to go further.

Emma Lazarus wrote the piece in 1883 for use in an auction of art and literary works to help fund the building of a pedestal for the Statue of Liberty. At that time, Lazarus had been heavily involved in assisting thousands of Jewish immigrants settle into New York.

These people, people of her own faith, had been taking refuge from Russia and other eastern European countries where rulers, with might on permanent loan from God, had been making life hell for them. It was their plight that moved her to describe them as “huddled masses”. The ruling classes of Europe saw them exactly as she’d depicted them: “wretched refuse” and were delighted to push them away from their “teeming shore” to our seemingly golden one.

Once here, the “tired and poor” faced uphill battles but they set to them with a will. They were going to be free. They kept their faith, their food, and some aspects of their mother tongue and culture but by God, they were going to be Americans!

And therein lays a tale of two centuries of immigrants: those who were happy to begin anew vs. those who are panting to replace the new with the old all for the glory of their God.

The ones that Donald Trump and that a lot of Americans are troubled about, aren’t coming here all smiles, snatches of song and tins of Halva. They are coming here not to take part in the grand experiment of democracy but rather, to put an end to it.

These people, mostly young men, do not look forward to learning the language or the customs of the country. Rather, they look forward to a day when all shall live under the customs of their old country. All shall obey Sharia, every knee shall bow to their Allah, or every neck shall be barred to their sword.

This would certainly and most especially include the very people Emma Lazarus sought to protect; the Jews. Her desire for their continued existence extended to having a special homeland established just for them so that they could be safe. Until then, the land beyond the “air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame” would have to do.

That land is now under attack. Donald Trump sees it. A lot of decent Americans who sleep on sheets rather than wear them see it. However, an elected official and his fellows do not see it. They pontificate a blue streak how those who seek to keep people out are hateful beings akin to Nazis.

Trump has, in the words of this administration, “disqualified” himself to be president. Oh, really? And who are you to say this? The last I checked, we the people were the ones to make this call, not you.

“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp…” wrote Lazarus.
Too bad a village in Kenya didn’t do just that.

Lazarus penned “The New Colossus” for an auction she was at first reluctant to participate in. As it was, the piece was largely forgotten until 1903 when her friends, seeking to memorialize her, had it cast in bronze and mounted in the inner wall of Lady Liberty’s pedestal. It was official: America was now the inn-keeper of the world.

I wonder what she would think if she were here now, watching this juggernaut of violence making inroads into her country. Would she be willing to roll the dice with American lives just so as not to be seen as “vacuous”?

Or would she wish to go back in time, take the sheet holding her verse and sacrifice it to the nearest wastebasket or fireplace lest someone take her prose and twist it into being holy writ?

The old New Colossus; what on earth does she stand for now? Protection for the rights of those demanding entry? Or for the right of protection for those already within her “golden door”.

Your vote in the coming elections will decide this. Please, choose wisely.