No le backsies!
A French Parliament member is demanding the US return the Statue of Liberty, claiming America has lost its way and no longer stands for what the iconic sculpture represents.
“We’re going to say to the Americans who have chosen to side with the tyrants, to the Americans who fired researchers for demanding scientific freedom: ‘Give us back the Statue of Liberty,’ ” the left-leaning French dip, Raphaël Glucksmann, said during a recent convention of his political party, Place Publique, according to the French newspaper Le Monde.
“We gave it to you as a gift, but apparently you despise it. So it will be just fine here at home,” he said as the crowd erupted in cheers.
Glucksmann is a major booster of the Ukraine war and has sharply criticized President Trump for aggressively seeking to pull back on US support for the effort. He also has been a vocal opponent of Trump reducing funding to colleges and research institutions.
“The second thing we’re going to say to the Americans is: ‘If you want to fire your best researchers, if you want to fire all the people who, through their freedom and their sense of innovation, their taste for doubt and research, have made your country the world’s leading power, then we’re going to welcome them,’” he said.
Glucksmann criticized right-wing members of France’s parliament, whom he called a “fan club” for Trump as well as Tesla CEO and world’s richest man Elon Musk, who has taken on a highly visible role in the administration.
Lady Liberty was designed by French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi and given to the US as a gift from France. It was unveiled in Upper New York Bay in 1886 in a dedication ceremony by then-President Grover Cleveland. The beloved statue has since become one of the US’ most enduring symbols and a beacon of freedom the world over.
The Statue of Liberty weighs about 450,000 pounds and stands 305 feet tall, including her star-shaped granite pedestal.
A 1/4-scale replica of Lady Liberty — given to France by the US in 1889 to mark 100 years since the French Revolution — can be found on Allée des Cygnes, a narrow island on the Seine River not far from the Eiffel Tower.
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