LADY LIBERTY PROJECT         

 

WE THE PEOPLE STAND

TO PROTECT OUR DEMOCRACY

 

 

THIS IS AN AFFIRMATION TO:

Respect the constitution

Defend due process

Uphold the rule of law

Honor separation of power

Demand accountability

Support voting rights for all

Defend free speech & press

Respect freedom of assembly

Protect immigrant rights

 

These values are worth showing up for. Join us.

         

We step up and out to public spaces in procession, 

a reminder of the core values, our country's ideals.  

 

July 4th, 2025 “Lady Liberty Project” was launched, a street theater presence to honor our American icon, the Statue of Liberty and Mother of Exiles. Liberty and Justice for ALL!

 

As a celebration with the public, we threw a dance and skating party at Seattle's Alki Beach around a small-scale replica of the statue. This project is an affirmation and a plea to uphold our country's best core values, to illuminate what she represents:

 

PROTECT DEMOCRACY with our Constitution and Bill of Rights

 

LIBERTY  from slavery    from monarchy    from tyranny      

 

ENLIGHTENMENT  lead with knowledge, reason and compassion 

 

This is a collaboration of friends who want to inform, inspire and ignite awareness of the values of Lady Liberty with music, dance, poetry, stories and song.  

 

    We strive to:

 

    - Sustain the view of Lady Liberty as a world beacon of welcoming.

 

    - Recall the words of The New Colossus, Emma Lazarus’ famed sonnet.

 

 

 

 

The inspiration to germinate this project was my undocumented grandfather, who at 19 sailed from Germany as World War I broke out. He entered through Ellis Island and slipped into the throng of laborers, changed his name and language to survive. He kept his stories hidden in fear until the centennial of the statue in 1986, when at age 90 he finally shared his back pages with me. There are many stories of immigration to learn and honor.              

   

-  Ariel Rathbun