Woman Who Climbed the Statue of Liberty Is an Immigrant Activist

Police say that the woman who scaled the Statue of Liberty on the Fourth of July has been identified as Therese Patricia Okoumou, a 44-year-old immigrant from the Democratic Republic of the Congo who lives in Staten Island. She is currently in federal custody following a three-hour standoff with authorities.

Sources told the New York Post that Okoumou claims she climbed up to the feet of Lady Liberty to show her disapproval of President Trump’s zero-tolerance policy on immigration and the separation of families at the border.

Still there. A ladder has appeared #statueofliberty pic.twitter.com/n03QxDVqZC

— Sarah (@sarah_eyebrows) July 4, 2018

Okoumou told investigators that she’s part of a group protest organized by Rise and Resist NYC, though organizers initially tried to distance themselves from Okoumou’s statue climb (they later admitted she was part of the group). Rise and Resist NYC opened a banner on Liberty Island less than an hour before her climb, which read: “ABOLISH ICE.”