On this day in 1887, the great Jewish American poet Emma Lazarus passed away at the age of 38. Born in 1849, Lazarus is best remembered as the poet who wrote “The New Colossus,” written in 1883 as part of a fundraising effort to build the pedestal for the Statue of Liberty and engraved upon the base of the statue.

Though the Statue of Liberty was initially designed as a symbol of the enduring friendship between the United States and France, Lazarus’ poem, coupled with her fierce commitment to immigration and immigrants’ rights, transformed the statue into symbol of the warm welcome she hoped America would ultimately provide to all immigrants, regardless of origin.

Though she remains best known for this poem and her immigration advocacy, Lazarus also devoted her considerable talents toward combatting the rise of anti-Semitism and promoting Zionism, reminding us all that, as American Jews, we can and must embrace the tasks of ensuring the promise of liberty for our fellow Jews and also for those “huddled masses yearning to breathe free” everywhere.

— Rabbi Josh Knobel