Keep it Lit!

Emma’s Poem: The voice of the Statue of Liberty– Linda Glaser  (illustrated with paintings by Claire A. Nivola)

(Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

As we prepare to elect a new national director and as many of those who make this country truly great continue to be denigrated and dumped on, it may be ideal timing to revisit a ten-year-old book with a hundred-year-old lesson that should hopefully stick with us for decades and centuries to come.

Linda Glaser’s Emma’s Poem: The voice of the Statue of Libertytells the story of Emma Lazarus, the Jewish writer who came up with the verse that greeted the millions who came to Ellis Island after gazing longingly at the woman with the torch and of that world-famous woman herself.

Surrounded by people who “had plenty of everything,” Lazarus had to actively seek out the tired and poor of whom she later spoke in her poem. But she did more than find them; she gave of herself and of her personal wealth to help them, even when many others who were allegedly of the same class would not. Using her skill with words, she taught English to the immigrants and wrote impassioned pieces in publications about them. When the opportunity came to contribute to a collection of verse that would raise funds for the pedestal for the gigantic gift from France, Lazarus was asked to participate. While many may not know that there were other poems and poets involved, her words have become a motto for our nation.

So now, as we prepare for the nation’snext steps, it would behoove us all to look again and in a more focused and open-hearted way at Lazarus’ verses and to take up the challenge she laid down to continue to lift the lamp of liberty (and also that of learning) for all who come in search of these vital gifts.

What better way, then, than through a beautifully-illustrated book that, though perhaps intended for children, offers a message for all?

– Matt Robinson

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