The Statue of Responsibility is a proposed structure to be built on the West Coast of the United States. The prototype, sculpted by project artist Gary Lee Price, consists of a pair of clasped hands oriented vertically, symbolizing the responsibility that comes with liberty.
The Statue of Responsibility was suggested first by scholar Viktor Frankl in his book Man's Search for Meaning. He recommended "that the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast should be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast." His wrote: "Freedom, however, is not the last word. Freedom is only part of the story and half of the truth. Freedom is but the negative aspect of the whole phenomenon whose positive aspect is responsibleness. In fact, freedom is in danger of degenerating into mere arbitrariness unless it is lived in terms of responsibleness."[1][2]
The project is being managed by the non-profit Statue of Responsibility Foundation. The project has progressed slowly, but in 2010, the Utah state legislature unanimously declared their support for the project and declared Utah (Mr. Price's home state) the Birthplace of the Statue of Responsibility.[3] 2010 also saw the Statue of Responsibility Foundation sign a strategic alliance with a large volunteer organization, the National Exchange Club.[4]
The statue foundation would like to build it in one of five cities: Long Beach, San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco (California) or Seattle (Washington). However none of the cities have yet to form any opinion on the project nor have they been contacted by the foundation.[5]
The Foundation intends to incorporate following elements of the Statue of Liberty into the Statue of Responsibility.