September 2004 launched the
beginning of a year-long celebration in which
the national Jewish community
will be initiating programs, events and
exhibitions to celebrate 350
years of life in America. (The first Jews
arrived in New York City in
1654). Learn more at www.celebrate350.org.
One of the most important
figures in that history is Emma Lazarus, whose
famous poem "The New
Colossus" is inscribed on the Statue of Liberty,
including the line "Give
me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses
yearning to breathe
free." Would you be interested in speaking to a
Jewish
history and Emma Lazarus
expert to learn more about Lazarus' forgotten
legacy?
Hannia Moore, a Jewish
holocaust survivor and immigrant, recently wrote
the
first fictionalized biography
of Lazarus' life. She is available for
interviews at your request.
See the press release below for more
information.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: H.S. Moore
(212) 490-0066 or ulpan@aol.com.
RESURRECTING LADY LIBERTY'S
FORGOTTEN POET;
Jewish World War II Survivor
Explores Mysterious Legacy of Emma Lazarus
(NEW YORK CITY, N.Y.) A
visionary Jewish poet born in the nineteenth
century, Emma Lazarus is
still largely unknown, even though she was a
prominent author of her time
and her famous poem "The New Colossus" is
inscribed on the pedestal of
the Statue of Liberty. The line "Give me
your
tired, your poor/Your huddled
masses yearning to breathe free," may now be
permanently engraved into the
collective American memory, but no mystery
has
been more elusive than that
of Emma Lazarus' private life. Biographies
have
been few and far between, due
in part to a lack of primary sources.
Now one Jewish World
War II survivor has taken on the task of
writing
the first
fictional account of Lazarus' life, told through the
eyes
of
Lazarus herself. The
result is a new novel called "Liberty's Poet, Emma
Lazarus" (Turnkey Press,
January 2005, ISBN: #0-9754803-4-0, $14.95) by
immigrant Hannia S. Moore.
Born into a wealthy Jewish
family in New York City, Lazarus was part of
the
city's literary elite and was
mentored by Ralph Waldo Emerson. She wrote
prolifically throughout her
life and was published in periodicals such as
the "Atlantic
Monthly" and the "New York Times." In later years,
she
translated many Jewish works
and wrote bold poetry and essays protesting
the
rise of anti-Semitism.
Lazarus worked passionately to improve the life of
new immigrants in America,
protested Jewish pogroms in Russia, and
advocated
for the creation of a Jewish
homeland in Palestine. Her controversial
stance
as a forerunner of the
Zionist movement (before the Zionist title had even
been coined), was often
misunderstood.
Many late nineteenth century
American women writers found success as
authors. Still, they were
often seen as a "damned mob of scribbling
women."
In "Liberty's
Poet," Moore brings Lazarus' complicated identity to life,
resurrecting Lazarus' story
from its obscured place in the margins of
American culture.
Moore, a native of the
Ukraine, is uniquely qualified to give Lazarus a
voice as her life eerily
mirrors Lazarus.' Similar to Lazarus, Moore is a
Jewish writer, poet and
Hebrew language translation expert. Moore has
even
translated Lazarus' poem,
"The New Colossus" into Hebrew. Like Lazarus,
Moore also lives in New York
City. Moore's displacement after World War
II
and subsequent immigration to
five different countries also links her to
Lazarus, as Moore is a
modern-day representation of the immigrants Lazarus
was dedicated to defending at
the turn of the century.
As a source, Moore can
discuss:
· The life of Emma Lazarus:
why her story is important and why we should
teach it to our children
· The spooky similarity of
her life to Lazarus' story
· Her early experience in
the Ukraine as one of the "hidden children" in
World War II
· Her life as an immigrant
(to Poland, Israel, Canada, and US) and current
immigration issues
· Where Judaism is headed in
the 21st century: why many New Yorkers
identify
as "just Jewish"
· Tips for learning/teaching
a second language
· Anecdotes from her career
as a fashion designer in New York City
