A French politician has suggested the US is no longer worthy of keeping the Statue of Liberty.
The call from Raphael Glucksmann, a member of the European Parliament and co-president of a small left-wing party, for the return of the monument is not going to make it happen.
But his claims in a speech this weekend that some Americans “have chosen to switch to the side of the tyrants” reflect the broad shock waves that US President Donald Trump’s seismic policy shifts are triggering in Europe.
“Give us back the Statue of Liberty,” Mr Glucksmann said, speaking on Sunday to supporters of his Public Place party, who applauded and whistled.
“It was our gift to you. But apparently you despise her. So she will be happy here with us,” he said.
The White House brushed back on the comments on Monday, saying France instead should still be “grateful” for US support during the first World War and second World War.
Unesco, the cultural arm of the United Nations with the statue on its list of World Heritage treasures, notes that the famous monument is US government property.
It was initially envisaged as a monumental gesture of French-American friendship to mark the 100th anniversary of the July 4th, 1776, Declaration of Independence.
But a war that erupted in 1870 between France and German states led by Prussia diverted the energies of the monument’s designer, French sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi.
The gift also took time to be funded, with a decision taken that the French would pay for the statue and Americans would cover the costs of its pedestal.
Transported in 350 pieces from France, the statue was officially unveiled on October 28th, 1886.
French-US relations would have to drop off a cliff before Mr Glucksmann found support from French President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
For the moment, the French president is treading a fine line – trying to work with Mr Trump and temper some of his policy shifts on the one hand, but also pushing back hard against some White House decisions, notably Mr Trump’s tariff hikes.
Mr Macron has let his prime minister, Francois Bayrou, let loose with a more critical voice.
Mr Bayrou tore into the “brutality” that was shown to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy during his recent White House visit, and suggested that Mr Trump’s administration risked handing victory to Russia when it paused military aid to Ukraine.
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Mr Glucksmann’s party has been even more critical, posting accusations on its website that Mr Trump is wielding power in an “authoritarian” manner and is “preparing to deliver Ukraine on a silver platter” to Russia.
In his speech, Mr Glucksmann referenced New York poet Emma Lazarus’s words about the statue, the “mighty woman with a torch” who promised a home for the “huddled masses yearning to breathe free”.
“Today, this land is ceasing to be what it was,” Mr Glucksmann said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked on Monday about Mr Glucksmann’s comments, and responded that the US would “absolutely not” be parting with the statue.
“My advice to that unnamed low-level French politician would be to remind them that it’s only because of the United States of America that the French are not speaking German right now,” Ms Leavitt said, apparently referencing US engagements on the side of France during the first and second World Wars.
“They should be very grateful.”
But the debt of gratitude runs both ways – Ms Leavitt skipped past France’s key role in supporting the future United States during its war for independence from the United Kingdom. – AP
