Lycée de la Côtière
Miss Liberty Gets Americanism Lesson – Tle L
CORRECTION
Before answering the questions, read the text very carefully at least twice.
 Introduce the document.
This document is a newspaper article taken from the Milwaukee Sentinel, a
daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. It was written
by Art Buchwald who was a columnist (chroniqueur) and it was published in 1975.
It deals with the mass immigration of Asian people (boat people = Vietnamese and
Cambodian) to the US in the mid 1970’s.
 Who are the two characters present in the scene? Look for more information
about them and present them in a few words.
The two characters present in the scene are the narrator (who may be Art Buchwald himself) and
Miss Liberty (the statue of Liberty).
The Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World) is located on Liberty Island at the entrance
of New York Harbor.
It was made in Paris by the French sculptor Bartholdi, in collaboration with Gustave Eiffel (who was
responsible for the steel framework). Its design and construction were recognized at the time as one
of the greatest technical achievements of the 19th century
Since its construction, it has welcomed millions of immigrants who arrived to the United States by
sea. The Statue also became a symbol of the migration of people from many countries into the United
States in the late 19th and the early 20th centuries. She embodies ideals such as liberty, peace,
human rights, abolition of slavery, democracy and opportunity.
It represents a robed female figure standing for Libertas, the Roman goddess of freedom, who bears
a torch and a tablet upon which is inscribed the date of the American Declaration of Independence,
July 4, 1776. A broken chain lies at her feet. The statue is an icon of freedom and of the United
States: a welcoming signal to immigrants arriving from abroad.
In 1903, a bronze tablet that bears the text of "The New Colossus" and commemorates Emma
Lazarus was presented by friends of the poet. Until the 1986 renovation, it was mounted inside the
pedestal; today it resides in the Statue of Liberty Museum in the base.
 Where and when do you think the scene take place? Look for more information
about the historical context.
The scene takes place on Liberty Island in New York harbor where the Statue of Liberty is located.
It must take place in the mid 1970’s when many refugees from Asia (Vietnam and Cambodia) migrated
to the US to escape/flee/run away from wars, political unrest (dictatorships) and upheavals in their
native country.
Indeed, 1975 was the year when Communist North Vietnam invaded South Vietnam 3 years after the
withdrawal of the American troups who supported the government from South Vietnam. Many South
Vietnamese tried to flee their home-country (boat people) to escape persecution and execution.
In Cambodia, it was the start of the Khmer Rouge period (1975–1979). It refers to the rule of Pol
Pot, a communist dictator who was responsible for what is commonly known as the Cambodian
Holocaust or Genocide : the death of approximately 2 million lives through political executions,
starvation, forced labor and the persecution of ethnic minorities.
 What are the statue and the narrator discussing/debating about?
The statue and the narrator are debating about the mass immigration of Asian people to the US.
Should they welcome these people who are seeking political asylum/refuge from the war/ fleeing an
authoritarian regime or not?
 What does the narrator ask the Statue to do and why? List the different arguments/ reasons put
forward to convince the statue. (Quote the text and then rephrase – reproduire le tableau dans le
cahier)
The narrator asks the statue to ‘look the other way’ (l2) and ‘hold (her)torch high and light the way
for them’ (l 3,4), that is to say to turn towards the West and get ready to welcome and help
Cambodian and Vietnamese immigrants and refugees.
Quotations
“the same thing you did with everybody else” (l7)
‘Whoever came to this country eventually found
jobs, and almost all of them made good citizens »
(l 11)
“we’re responsible for them being refugees. We
screwed up a country like it’s never been before.
We supported their corrupt governments, loaded
them down with weapons they couldn’t use,
defoliated their rice paddies and wrecked their
families. We left the country in a mess” (l 17 to
20)
“But most of our fathers and grandfathers and
great grandfathers were foreigners. You
welcomed them all” (l 24 25)
“These people need refuge” (l29)
“their lives are in ruins” (l29)
Rephrasing
It has always been her role/ her mission to
help and welcome immigrants. Why should it be
different now?
There is no reason why these new immigrants
should be different from Western immigrants:
most of them will be hard-working and honest
American citizens who will integrate / fit into
the American society (no threat)
This passage sounds like a mea culpa from an
American citizen who blames the US for being
responsible for the terrible situation in Vietnam
and Cambodia. He accuses Americans of helping
corrupt governments in Asia and reproaches
them with destroying paddy fields / with being
responsible for starvation/famine.
The narrator reminds the Statue of the
origins/the foundations of the American society.
The US has always been a country of immigrants,
made by immigrants for immigrants she has
always welcomed with open arms wherever they
came from.
The narrator’s appeals to the statue’s pity: They
are people in need who must be helped!
“when they flew in orphans from Vietnam and
The narrator tries to convince the statue that
Cambodia (…) nobody seemed to object to that” (l most American citizens are ready to welcome
30)
these refugees: some have already started doing
it in adopting orphans”
 Focus on paragraph 7 and comment on the writer’s feelings .
The narrator feels guilty / responsible / liable/accountable for the damage done/caused in Vietnam
and Cambodia . He feels ashamed too for the American people and thinks the US should put
right/undo / make up for / amend for the harm they have done;
 Take a close look at the sentences or phrases which have been underlined in the document. Which
very famous text were they taken from? Why does the narrator refer to it in your opinion? What
does he aim at?
All these phrases were taken from the famous poem by American poet Emma Lazarus “The new
Colossus”. This sonnet was written in 1883. In 1903, the poem was engraved on a bronze plaque and
mounted inside the lower level of the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty.
The poem is about the millions of immigrants who came to the United States (many of them through
Ellis Island at the port of New York).
In referring to this poem the narrator aims at reminding the statue what she stands for/symbolizes
and the ideals she embodies: liberty, peace, human rights, abolition of slavery, democracy and
opportunity. He wants to remind her she has always been an icon of freedom, a welcoming signal to
immigrants arriving from abroad.
 How does the statue first react? Pick out an adjective (paragraph 2), an adverb (paragraph 4) and
a verb (paragraph 6) revealing her state of mind.
“irritated” (l5) / “petulantly” (l9) / “she growled” (l13)
At first, the statue gets angry. She is depicted like a quick-tempered, irritable character who
doesn’t want to listen to what the narrator has to tell her. She objects to the narrator’s criticisms.
 List the statue’s different counter-arguments? What is she afraid of? (Quote the text and then
rephrase – reproduire le tableau dans le cahier)
Quotations
“We have too many people in this country now.
What am I going to do with 55,000 Orientals?”
« What about jobs ? Who is going to support
them?”
“who is going to feed them”
“How many will go on Welfare”
“The American people are not thrilled about
having a bunch of refugees dumped on them”
“we have to think of American first. They don’t
want any foreigners in this country”
Rephrasing
Times have changed and the USA population is
too big now to welcome new immigrants.
Unemployment is already a big issue. Many
Americans are out of work and apply for Welfare
in this time of economic crisis. So there is no job
for new-comers and the Welfare system will not
be able to support them.
Most Americans (the public opinion) disagree
with/ object to welcoming Asian immigrants.
National preference must prevail! (protectionist
policy)
“How do we know their kids won’t get in trouble
in the streets”
“we have enough problems in this country”
“It isn’t our fault if they lost the war”
“they’ll stick out like a sore thumb”
Immigrants’ children may be the cause of urban
violence. They may become
delinquents/offenders.
It may refer to the difficult economic and social
situation of the time (economic crisis following
the oil crisis)
The statue considers the US is not responsible/
liable/ accountable for what happened in
Vietnam. South Vietnamese lost the war and
must accept the consequences!
Asians will never be able to fit into the American
society / to assimilate/ to integrate.
 What does the narrator blame Miss Liberty for with the sentence “do you have anything against
Orientals?”? What does he reproach her with? What does he accuse her of?
The narrator blames the statue for being racist/ xenophobic. He accuses her of discrimination
against Asians.
 Does the narrator eventually convince her to do? Why does he mention “the Golden Gate
Bridge”?
The narrator eventually convinces the statue to give/set an example to the American people and to
turn towards the West and get ready to welcome and help Cambodian and Vietnamese immigrants and
refugees.
 Comment on the statue’s ‘tear’ at the end of the text. How can you explain she is crying?
The statue weeps at the end of the text as she realizes she had forgotten about her initial mission
and about the ideals she was supposed to embody.
 In the end, Who do you think the Statue speaks and stands for? What did Art Buchwald aimed
at with this paper?
The statue may speak and stand for the American public opinion/ the average American citizen.
With this paper Art Buchwald aimed at making the American change their mind on the question of
Asian refugees in the US / at convincing them that the US should help and welcome Asian immigrants.
/ at denouncing discrimination against Asian immigrants …