Therese Patricia Okoumou, the activist who climbed the base of the Statue of Liberty on July 4, is a legal immigrant from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Okoumou, 44, who climbed the statue to protest the separation of families at the Mexican border, is a member of the anti-Trump “Rise and Resist” group that is partially funded by Hillary Clinton’s foundation and globalist George Soros.
Rise and Resist previously announced a planned protest on the 4th of July. But the group initially denied Okoumou was a member — saying she had “no connection” to their protest. They changed their tune after seeing a close up of Okoumou on television.
“She’s been an active member for about four and five months,” activist Jay Walker told the NY Post.
Walker said group members were shocked to see Okoumou take it upon herself to climb the Statue of Liberty, which is a symbol of freedom and a path to legal residency for millions of immigrants.
“She didn’t tell any of us about this plan. We were all really shocked,” Walker said.
Okoumou was arrested and she faces misdemeanor charges of trespassing on federal property.
The muscular activist is no stranger to the NYC court system. Okoumou was assessed $4,500 in fines by the Department of Sanitation for illegally posting flyers advertising her personal training services on dozens of utility poles in the St. George neighborhood of Staten Island.
Okoumou also sued a former employer who terminated her “for complaining of discrimination.”
According to The Post, she was arrested in 2017 for illegally demonstrating outside the Department of Labor building on Varick Street.
Okoumou taped over her mouth and refused to respond to officers’ commands.
Therese Okoumou. A hero.
Wouldn’t come down from the Statue of Liberty until “all the children are released.” pic.twitter.com/RzxQIrnMvl
— Michael Skolnik (@MichaelSkolnik) July 5, 2018
Police have captured a woman who had climbed up to the robes of the Statue of Liberty in a protest over the separation of migrant families on the border https://t.co/C8OJAlxh2l pic.twitter.com/ZEIz2cPdEB
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) July 4, 2018
Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images