Name: The Statue of Liberty Age: 118 Nationality: American Claim to fame: The Lady is seeing visitors again September 11, 2001 has come to be one of the most significant dates in modern times. The world is a different place since that fateful day. And it wasn’t any different for Lady Liberty, that stood and watched, just miles away as planes smashed into the World Trade Centre. Immediately, America’s symbol of democracy and liberty was closed for renovations and security improvements.
Now, almost after three years and thanks to over $30 million in private donations, on August 3, the Statue of Liberty was re-opened to the public. In an hour long ceremony, Lady Liberty was hailed in song and speech that saw a large number of people gathered to mark the event, despite a heightened terror alert following warnings of possible renewed terrorist attacks on financial centres in nearby Manhattan, New York, N.J., and Washington.
At the ceremony, New York’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg urged “all Americans to come here” and demonstrate that the country would never be “coerced into abandoning any symbol of America.” The State’s Governor, George Pataki announced: “This beacon of hope and liberty is once again open to the public, sending a reassuring message to the world that freedom is alive in New York and shining brighter than ever before.”
Visitors are now allowed to enter the statue’s platform, as well as enjoy the panoramic view from the observation deck at the top of the pedestal, about 16 stories above ground. The rest of the Statue is still off-limits for public as security measures there are not suitable for coping with large number of visitors. Tourists now can go only as high as the statue’s feet, where they can gaze up through a glass partition at the steel girders bracing the landmark’s hollow interior.
Tightened security measures at the 118-year-old national monument include a new anti-bomb detection device that blasts air into clothing and then checks for particles of explosive residue. Airport-type metal detectors were installed to screen visitors boarding the ferry from lower Manhattan,
The 152-foot robed female figure with spiky crown and upraised torch is the most familiar symbol of America. Particularly in the late 19th and 20th centuries it symbolized a beacon of hope for immigrants who arrived at nearby Ellis Island.
The statue, made of hammered copper the thickness of two pennies, was closed in 1937 for a year of renovations and underwent another major refurbishing for its centennial in 1986. Installed in 1886, in 1916, the Statue’s arm was damaged and its structure jeopardized when German saboteurs blew up a weapons dump near the banks of the nearby state of New Jersey.
According to the information received by US intelligence agencies, during August and September there are chances of possible terrorist attacks on major US targets. But with both New York and Washington under tight security surveillance, people will hardly be able to move around without feeling some sense of fear. With or without any attack, the terrorists have achieved their aim — terror has become a part of everyday life in the land of Lady Liberty.
September 11, 2001 has come to be one of the most significant dates in modern times. The world is a different place since that fateful day. And it wasn’t any different for Lady Liberty, that stood and watched, just miles away as planes smashed into the World Trade Centre. Immediately, America’s symbol of democracy and liberty was closed for renovations and security improvements.
