Give me your weary, impoverished, huddled masses longing for freedom. " These iconic lyrics from "The New Colossus," an 1883 poem penned by American Emma Lazarus and carved in bronze and set on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty, have once again sparked a passionate political debate on immigration. The statue, which was created by French sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi and inaugurated in 1886, faces out toward America's west coast. Lazarus's son changed the lyric's meaning when he submitted it for approval to the poet Emma DeWitt Smith. He wanted it to more accurately reflect the purpose of the statue, which was being called into service as a refugee camp during World War II. Instead of saying "Send these poor souls back where they came from," it now reads "Send these heroes home to their loved ones." Lazarus died in 1887 at age 37 after an illness caused by stress related to his efforts to raise money for the refugees. She is now considered one of the nation's founding mothers because of her involvement with the Immigration Movement. In 1989, President George H. W. Bush signed legislation to designate April 23 as a national day of remembrance for immigrants. In 1990, Congress passed another law establishing August 14 as National Immigration Day.