16 20 12614 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Tuesday, January 22, 2002 5:57 PM Comments from NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, New York, NY Attachment 1: By Facsimile And E-Mail January 22, 2002 Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Main Building, Room 3140 950 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, DC 20530 Re: September 11 Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 Dear Mr. Zwick: The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund ("Fund") 1 represents the commitment of all Americans to aid the victims of that terrible day as fully, and as fairly, as possible.2 NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund is a leading national non-profit civil rights organization that performs a broad range of legal and educational services to define and defend women's rights. We are based in lower Manhattan, and our staff has been deeply affected by the attack on our city and our nation that day. We offer these comments in the same spirit of compassion with which the Special Master attempts to help the victims of this tragedy, and with the hope of ensuring that the Fund represents America's most cherished values, including the equality of all persons before the law. Many of the victims of the September 11th attacks were women, the majority of whom worked full time. Many of these women were also members of racial and ethnic minority groups, as were large numbers of the tragedy's male victims. We are concerned that the Interim Final Rule setting forth federal regulations to implement the Fund may discriminate against and threaten the constitutional rights of the victims of the terrorist attacks, through the Fund's anticipated use of gender- and race-based data to determine compensation.3 This practice, we believe, threatens the constitutional rights of women and minorities, spinning into the future a history of state and private discrimination against these groups. Troublingly, the anticipated use of such gender- and race-based data has not been disclosed by the government in the Rule itself or in any of the explanatory materials provided to potential claimants and the public to date (see infra). This seriously undermines the government's effort to ensure that potential claimants can make "informed decisions regarding whether to file claims with the Fund." Further, we believe that the Rule undervalues women victims' contributions to their families and society. Whether or not they are employed full time, women in America perform the lion's share of essential, unpaid services including care-giving and household work. Such work is typically compensated under tort law, yet the Fund's approach fails to capture the significant value of this labor. The Fund's Anticipated Reliance On Gender- And Race-Based Data To Determine Compensation Threatens The 9-11 Victims' Constitutional Right To Equal Protection. Given the interest all Americans have in ensuring that the compensation process treat victims equally and fairly at every stage, we urge the Special Master not to use gender and race as factors in calculating compensation, whether to estimate victims' worklife and future earning capacity, or for other purposes. As discussed further below, we are extremely concerned that the public and potential claimants do not understand that the Fund may consider the victims' gender and race in establishing awards, and indeed, may have been misled into believing that only factors of age, marital status, past income and number of dependents would be relevant. The stubbornly persistent wage gap between men and women, and between whites and racial and ethnic minorities,5 derives from a long history of government and private discrimination which has favored male and white workers. In large part due to the commitment of the U.S. government to eradicating discrimination and combatting this legacy,6 women and minorities enter the workforce today with the hope that their careers will not be clouded by past or present biases against them, and that they can pursue every opportunity available to all Americans. Courts have rejected and legal scholars have questioned the use of gender- and race- based data to determine damages, because their use is inherently unfair to women and minorities. When the government itself chooses to use such data, we must consider not just the unfairness to individuals but the threat of serious constitutional violations.8 Specifically, we believe that the Fund's anticipated reliance on gender-specific and race-specific data not only perpetuates discrimination against women and minorities, but will violate the September 11th victims' equal protection right under the Fifth Amendment. See U.S. Const. amend. V ("No person shall . . . be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law."). Victims' rights may also be violated under state constitutional guarantees of equal protection. In the states in which large numbers of potential claimants reside, separate equal protection guarantees exist; in some cases these are more protective than the federal constitution.9 Some of these states have equal rights amendments, which offer additional constitutional protection against gender-based violations of equal protection.10 Some also have constitutional guarantees of "open access" to the courts: denial of full compensation for injuries on the basis of race or gender may violate these "remedies clauses." Classifying victims of the September 11 tragedy by their gender and race for the purpose of determining compensation is an invalid use by the government of suspect classifications that will not withstand constitutional scrutiny. As a threshold matter, the Fund's reliance on gender and race would undoubtedly constitute state action, bringing it within the reach of the Equal Protection Clause. Congress established the Fund "to provide federal money to victims and their families," in return for which the claimants must give up their right to sue airlines and other entities.12 The Department of Justice oversees administration of the Fund, including development of and implementation of procedures to determine claimants' eligibility and compensation.13 All aspects of the Fund's conception and implementation are thus clearly conduct attributable to the federal government and reached by the Equal Protection Clause. Under equal protection analysis, the government must justify its decision to classify the victims and claimants by their gender and race. There has been for decades a strong presumption in American law that gender classifications favoring men or women are invalid. U.S. v. Virginia ("VMI"), 518 U.S. 515, 541-42 (1996); J.E.B. v. Alabama ex rel. T.B., 511 U.S. 127 (1994). It is the government's burden to show that its justification for gender classifications is "exceedingly persuasive." VMI, 518 U.S. at 531 (state institution's male-only admissions policy invalidated where government failed to show "exceedingly persuasive justification" for gender-based classification). The gender-based worklife tables are predicated upon data that captures and continues a long history of discrimination against women, often based upon stereotypes about women's abilities and preferences. See, e.g., Miss. Univ. for Women v. Hogan, 458 U.S. 718, 730 (1982) (government's gender-classification reflected and perpetuated stereotypes about the sexes' labor force participation). In using this data, the government will rely on "overbroad generalizations about the different talents, capacities, or preferences of males and females."14 This will result in many women victims and their survivors receiving lower compensation than identically situated men, and will therefore "perpetuate the legal, social, and economic inferiority of women." Title VII, too, has been used to strike down the use of gender-based actuarial data as discriminatory against women.16 Thus the Supreme Court explained in Manhart that "in forbidding employers to discriminate against individuals because of their sex, Congress intended to strike at the entire spectrum of disparate treatment of men and women resulting from sex stereotypes . . . [federal anti-discrimination law] subjects to scrutiny and eliminates such irrational impediments to job opportunities and enjoyment which have plagued women in the past."17 And in Norris, the Court reiterated that sex-based classification of employees based on actuarial assumptions about longevity violated Title VII as "flatly inconsistent" with the federal law's requirement that "employers . . . treat their employees as individuals, not 'as simply components of a racial, religious, sexual, or national class.'" In this light, it is highly unlikely that any plausible governmental objective in using gender-based information--such as efficiency or accuracy--will be "exceedingly persuasive."19 This is especially so when the Special Master has indicated that one major Fund goal is to treat claimants fairly based on their individual and unique circumstances. Rule, at page 66274 (Fund goal to provide "just and appropriate" compensation "in light of "individual circumstances" analyzed beyond any "theoretically possible future income stream"). Compensating similarly situated claimants differently solely on the basis of their gender ignores the victims' "individual circumstances" in favor of projections of expected future earnings based in part on historic prejudices. This is especially unjust and ironic at a time when the United States' role in advancing the equality of women both here and abroad remains so urgent. The equal protection argument against the Fund's use of race-based tables runs along similar lines, and is arguably even stronger. Under federal constitutional jurisprudence, race is a "suspect classification," reviewed under "strict scrutiny": a test that is very seldom met. See, e.g., Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Pena, 515 U.S. 200, 235 (1995) (strict scrutiny test applies to determine whether race-based classifications violate equal protection) ("Federal racial classifications . . . must serve a compelling governmental interest, and must be narrowly tailored to further that interest"). By guaranteeing equal protection to persons of all races and ethnicities, the Constitution recognizes that "[r]acial and ethnic distinctions of any sort are inherently suspect and thus call for the most exacting judicial examination." Regents of Univ. of Cal. v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265, 291 (1978) (opinion of Powell, J.). See also Hirabayashi v. United States, 320 U.S. 81, 100 (1943) ("distinctions between citizens solely because of their ancestry are by their very nature odious to a free people whose institutions are founded upon the doctrine of equality."). The Supreme Court makes little allowance even for "benign" racial classifications which are designed to remedy past discrimination, see Adarand, 515 U.S. at 227; City of Richmond v. J.A. Croson Co., 488 U.S. 469 (1989) (minority set asides invalid under strict scrutiny because city failed to show narrowly tailored fit between compelling government interest and program). Far from being benign, the use of race-based data will penalize victims of September 11 and perpetuate a history of government-sponsored and private bias against racial minorities. Moreover, in an increasingly racially and ethnically diverse society, efforts at categorizing the thousands of victims accurately and fairly on the basis of perceived racial and ethnic group membership is likely to be both inaccurate and unmanageably complex. The Fund may suggest that its objectives in using race-based tables are greater efficiency or accuracy. However, this is not likely to be a "compelling" governmental objective supporting racial classifications where the task of ascribing racial and ethnic identities to the victims is likely to be complex and inaccurate. In any case, the goal of efficiency and accuracy can be well-met by the Fund's consideration of non-suspect classifications, such as age, income history, and marital status, which experts have long relied upon to assess projected future earnings. The Special Master's hearings will give the government ample opportunity to consider claimants' "individual circumstances" and award fair compensation without resorting to gross, overbroad generalizations about race which seem likely to violate the constitutional guarantee of equal protection. The Fund Has Misled The Victims And The Public About Its Planned Reliance On Gender And Race. The Special Master's Office has, under questioning from attorneys, journalists, and experts in the field of tort compensation, acknowledged that claims may be assessed based in part on the gender and race of the victim.21 Unfortunately, the government has not been candid about this possibility with potential claimants, or the American people. We are not aware of any part of the Rule or other materials made available to the public in which the Special Master or Department of Justice acknowledged that the government anticipates using the victims' gender and race to determine compensation.22 To the contrary, the Rule and other information have been quite misleading on this point. For example, the Rule states that the methodology will be based on the claimants' "readily identifiable" traits, and names among these the claimants' "age, prior income levels, marital status, and the number and ages of the victim's dependents."23 No mention is made of gender or race. Similarly, the Presumed Loss Calculation Tables Before any Collateral Offsets Chart ("Chart"), which potential claimants are invited to consult to estimate their compensation, appears to aggregate gender-based and race-based information.24 Persons consulting the Chart will find the same list of relevant "traits" mentioned in the Rule: age, marital status, income and number of children of the victim, but the Chart makes no mention of the potential relevance of the victim's gender or race. Indeed, the Chart's prefatory language strongly ---and misleadingly-- implies that women and men will be treated alike, by stating that the calculation of compensation "assumes that each person would have worked a number of years equal to the average expected worklife across the nation for males and females of the same age as the victim." See Chart, page 2.25 Because of the lack of clarity and candor from the government on this important issue, we are concerned that potential claimants remain unaware that the gender and race of the September 11 victims threatens to reduce the compensation available for women and members of racial minorities and violate their constitutional rights. The Fund Will Discriminate Against Women Victims In Its Valuation Of Unpaid Services. According to the Rule, presumed economic loss for victims does not take into consideration the true economic value of household services performed by the victims of the September 11th tragedy. The unpaid household services at stake may include such tasks as housecleaning, cooking, car-pooling and lawn-mowing; compensation for unpaid services must include care-giving, such as assisting children with school work or helping an older relative, as well. The Rule compensates claimants with a lump sum for non-economic components of "replacement services loss."26 As it relates to the valuation of economic losses, however, the Rule only compensates replacement services for those victims who had no prior earnings or worked only part time outside the home.27 Yet full time workers, too, perform valuable household services, and failure to fully compensate those services will fall hardest on women victims and their survivors, because working women typically perform a greater amount of these services than men. It is accepted practice for courts in New York and beyond to compensate victims, including those who work full-time, for the value of replacement services for their household work.28 Moreover, Congress contemplated economic losses to be construed by the Fund with reference to state law.29 In New York State wrongful death actions, for example, plaintiffs may recover all "fair and just compensation for the pecuniary injuries resulting from the decedent's death."30 New York courts have interpreted "pecuniary injuries"--or economic losses-- to include the loss of household services, and have not carved out an exception for full time workers.31 The federal courts have also recognized that the loss of a working woman's household services are recoverable, economic losses. While under-compensating all full time workers, we are especially concerned that the Rule's calculations will have a disproportionately negative impact on women victims, because women continue to perform more household services than men, though each case must be viewed individually. Thus, one study has shown that married women working full time with children under the age of 18 perform approximately 35.6 hours of household services per week, as compared to 26.9 hours performed by men.33 Therefore, women victims and their survivors are likely to be disproportionately harmed by the Rule's treatment of economic losses. By ignoring the extent and worth of unpaid, household services performed by victims who worked full time when calculating economic losses, the Fund fails to capture value of these "second shift" contributions. Conclusion We appreciate the enormity of the task facing the Special Master, especially as emotions about the process run high. The terrorist attacks on September 11th were not simply "torts" and the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund is not merely a fund to compensate victims of the tragedy. Even in this climate of pitched emotions, basic principles of fairness - some of which are constitutional in scope - must be honored in administering the Fund. Ignoring these principles threatens the rights of women and minorities, and perpetuates the long history of government and private discrimination against these groups. Sincerely yours, Comment by: NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund New York, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-22 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojN002319.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-01-22 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. December 15, 2001 Special Master Kenneth R. Feinberg September 11th Victim Compensation Fund U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20530 To Mr. Feinberg: I am writing to urge you to ensure fair treatment for all surviving families of the tragedy on September 11th, including the children and families of low-wage workers and gay and lesbian families. Under traditional rules based on lost wages, the survivors of a bond trader earning millions of dollars per year might receive thousands of times as much compensation as the survivors of a dishwasher in one of the restaurants destroyed. Justice requires looking far beyond the last paycheck to the inherent worth of all those killed, so that a high minimum compensation level is set to lessen the disparities. It would be a double blow to the survivors to first lose their loved one and then watch as most of the taxpayer money went to those who were already well off in the first place. The second major issue has to do with recognizing the legitimacy of gay and lesbian relationships and families. Gay and lesbian families are especially vulnerable when one partner is killed. Because the option of marriage is unavailable, these families may find themselves in the traumatic predicament of having to prove that their union is legitimate. Fortunately, both the Red Cross and the State of New York have already announced that they will not discriminate against gay and lesbian families. The Department of Justice should do the same. Thank you for considering my comments. I look forward to hearing how you will act on these very important issues. Sincerely, Individual Comment Grayslake, IL September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-15 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA004808.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-15 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, December 19, 2001 11:02 AM Equal Access December 19, 2001 Dear Mr. Kenneth Zwick, I write as a member of Amnesty International, a worldwide human rights movement committed to ensuring respect for the basic human rights of people without discrimination, in support of equal access to benefits under the September 11 Victims Relief Fund for all victims, regardless of sexual orientation or marital status. As you know, the United States has committed to uphold international human rights standards, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which prohibit arbitrary discrimination. As you consider rules for administering the relief fund, I ask that you apply basic international human rights standards, and the general principle of equality, by including among relatives eligible for compensation those who lost their life partners, as well as de facto parents or children, without regard to sexual orientation or marital status. The State of New York has already adopted such a policy, granting compensation benefits "on a showing of mutual interdependence with the victim, in recognition that anyone who shared with the victim living expenses, day to day activities and the emotional bonds of family deserves help in this time of need." Many lesbian and gay people were killed in the September 11th attacks. Since then, lesbian and gay surviving partners of those killed have had mixed results in obtaining equal treatment at the local level in the distribution of relief funds by private and state agencies. An inclusive policy on the part of the federal government would help establish an important principle for other such funds. In compensating victims, real justice will be served only when all families - and all types of families - impacted by the human rights tragedy of September 11 are treated with dignity and equality. Thank you for considering my concerns. I look forward to hearing from you about your efforts to ensure that all surviving victims of the September 11 attacks have equal access to the relief fund. Sincerely, Individual Comment Milwaukee, WI September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA003042.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Sent: Thursday, January 24, 2002 4:12 PM Subject: New Vote.com votes as of 04:12 PM EST on January 24th, 2002 Dear September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, Vote.com is the Internet's most popular voting site. Millions of people regularly express their opinions and - in just one click - automatically send their views to important decision makers like you. Here are the latest votes on the question, SHOULD FAMILIES OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WHO DIED ON 9-11 GET MONEY FROM THE FEDERAL VICTIMS' FUND?: YES: 115 votes NO: 1485 votes Group Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-24 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojP000089.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-01-24 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Thursday, February 07, 2002 11:15 AM Response My family and I are extremely upset by the blatant materialism that we perceive as we watch the "compensation" for the surviors of September 11th unfold. We were totally supportive of the effort to assist the wives and children of those murdered in terriorist attack. We donated a $250 towards that effort in the days following the incident. I question that donation now. Why should the public donate money towards a cause if the government is going to make a tragedy into a bonanza for the survivors? When did it become the role of the government to compensate citizens for the loss of their family members? How does the death of one person become more valuable than others? If we compensate these "victims" they why don't we compensate all others for death as a result of natural, accidental or criminal causes? Why did not these "victims" have insurance or other back up means for the loss of their spouse or other means of support? If we as a country want to disperse the revenue of our government to special classes of individual, then let us begin with those that have suffered the loss of their family members who have given their lives in the armed services and the defense of their country. Those who remain should be thankful that they live in this wonderful country and have the opportunity to pick up their life and move forward not for how much they and their lawyers can bilke the country for. Where has individual reponsibility for ones own care gone? Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-02-07 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojP000453.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-02-07 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Monday, March 11, 2002 1:44 PM gays are just as deserving the hero was gay...a pilot was gay...many of your contributors are gay...if only i knew you would discriminate ... why deny relationships .. you create hate by doing that... Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-11 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR000126.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-11 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Sent: Wednesday, December 05, 2001 11:52 PM Subject: Victim Relief fund Dear Mr. Zwick: I am writing in response to the Department's request for public comments regarding the forthcoming regulations for implementing and administering the "September 11 Victim Compensation Fund." I strongly urge the Department to draft regulations that ensure compensation is available to all victims of the attack, including the committed partners and the non-biological children of gay and lesbian victims. It is unquestionable that the devastating grief and economic losses suffered by the families of gay and lesbian victims are no less than that of other families. Just as the terrorists drew no lines in choosing their victims, our country must draw no lines in compensating those who suffered the most personal of losses from these horrific attacks. Many Americans lost their lives on September 11, each of whom left behind loved ones. I urge the Department to honor these bonds by treating the families of gay and lesbian victims as you would any other. Sincerely, Individual Comment Tampa, FL September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-05 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA001084.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-05 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Tuesday, November 06, 2001 9:23 AM Victims of the WTC disaster My brother was a victim of the World Trade Center disaster. He was a Firefighter with Ladder 25 in Manhattan and gave his life evacuating people from the burning building. There is no doubt that this type of herosim demonstrated by all the Firefighters, Police and Emergency workers was impetus behind the public's ongoing charitable donations. The public has contributed a significant amount of money to directly assist our fallen brothers and sisters - not to help the U.S. government bail out the airline industry and to protect its balance sheet. No one who has lost a relative or friend in this disaster wants to get rich -- in fact, we would give all that we had to have our loved ones returned to us. Barring that, we, the survivors, must bear the burden of incredible grief, coupled with the mundane aspects of settling our loved one's estates. The outpouring of charity has assisted in shouldering that burden, yet is a separate thing altogether from the responsibilities of our government. There has been no larger receipient of our government's largesse than the US Airline Industry. A $15 Billion dollar bailout of an industry already suffering from competitive pressures and a lack of regard by the public is certainly a boon to stockholders and the companies' CEOs. The package that was created by our government to bail out the industry, also created a fund for the victims to compensate us for the airlines unwillingness to provide for basic security. Of course, as a provision of this expedited settlement, the victims' families cannot sue the airlines. If one of us chooses to avail ourselves of this fund, we should be able to do so -- and not have our ultimate settlement reduced by the amounts received from Charity. Do we reduce the benefits for welfare recipients if they go to a soup kitchen? or use government sponsored daycare? Of course not - these are unthinkable! They fly in the face of why people donate to charity! This sentiment is no less true here - charity is charity, and the government is the government. They are separate entities and should be treated as such - it is unconcionable to treat them as equals. One final note - if the awards to victims families are reduced by the amounts they receive from charities, you have just given the trial lawyers the best 10 years of their lives. The amounts spent to prop up the airlines will be wasted, and the industry will go under from the weight of lawsuits and judgements for the victims families. Your choice is clear - preserve charitable donations for what they are, not for a method of balancing the government's books. Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-06 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojW000057.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-11-06 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. December 14, 2001 Special Master Kenneth R. Feinberg September 11th Victim Compensation Fund U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20530 To Mr. Feinberg: I am writing to urge you to ensure fair treatment for all surviving families of the tragedy on September 11th, including the children and families of low-wage workers and gay and lesbian families. Under traditional rules based on lost wages, the survivors of a bond trader earning millions of dollars per year might receive thousands of times as much compensation as the survivors of a dishwasher in one of the restaurants destroyed. Justice requires looking far beyond the last paycheck to the inherent worth of all those killed, so that a high minimum compensation level is set to lessen the disparities. It would be a double blow to the survivors to first lose their loved one and then watch as most of the taxpayer money went to those who were already well off in the first place. The second major issue has to do with recognizing the legitimacy of gay and lesbian relationships and families. Gay and lesbian families are especially vulnerable when one partner is killed. Because the option of marriage is unavailable, these families may find themselves in the traumatic predicament of having to prove that their union is legitimate. Fortunately, both the Red Cross and the State of New York have already announced that they will not discriminate against gay and lesbian families. The Department of Justice should do the same. Thank you for considering my comments. I look forward to hearing how you will act on these very important issues. Sincerely, Individual Comment Topanga, CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-14 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA004666.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-14 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, March 20, 2002 10:40 PM 9/11/01 hit ALL americans, including gays... I'm outraged and I want my money back. I will never again contribute to any types of these kinds of funds if you are now going to say that the families of some of our citizens that perished in 9/11 don't count....you should be ashamed. GAYS ARE INCLUDED WHEN WE SAY, ALL ARE CREATED EQUAL.... SIGNED Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-20 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR002445.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-20 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Friday, December 07, 2001 2:57 PM Comments, VictimComp 7 December 2001 Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs, Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Dear Mr. Zwick: I am writing in response to the Department's request for public comments regarding the forthcoming regulations for implementing and administering the "September 11 Victim Compensation Fund." I strongly urge the Department to draft regulations that ensure compensation is available to all victims of the attack, including the committed partners and the non-biological children of gay and lesbian victims. It is unquestionable that the devastating grief and economic losses suffered by the families of gay and lesbian victims are no less than that of other families. Just as the terrorists drew no lines in choosing their victims, our country must draw no lines in compensating those who suffered the most personal of losses from these horrific attacks. Many Americans lost their lives on September 11, each of whom left behind loved ones. I urge the Department to honor these bonds by treating the families of gay and lesbian victims as you would any other. Sincerely, Individual Comment Newington, CT September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-07 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA001299.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-07 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. December 13, 2001 Special Master Kenneth R. Feinberg September 11th Victim Compensation Fund U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20530 To Mr. Feinberg: I am writing to urge you to ensure fair treatment for all surviving families of the tragedy on September 11th, including the children and families of low-wage workers and gay and lesbian families. Under traditional rules based on lost wages, the survivors of a bond trader earning millions of dollars per year might receive thousands of times as much compensation as the survivors of a dishwasher in one of the restaurants destroyed. Justice requires looking far beyond the last paycheck to the inherent worth of all those killed, so that a high minimum compensation level is set to lessen the disparities. It would be a double blow to the survivors to first lose their loved one and then watch as most of the taxpayer money went to those who were already well off in the first place. The second major issue has to do with recognizing the legitimacy of gay and lesbian relationships and families. Gay and lesbian families are especially vulnerable when one partner is killed. Because the option of marriage is unavailable, these families may find themselves in the traumatic predicament of having to prove that their union is legitimate. Fortunately, both the Red Cross and the State of New York have already announced that they will not discriminate against gay and lesbian families. The Department of Justice should do the same. Thank you for considering my comments. I look forward to hearing how you will act on these very important issues. Sincerely, Individual Comment Berkeley, CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-13 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA003992.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-13 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Tuesday, March 19, 2002 4:09 PM Discrimination....... To whom it may concern: I find your discriminitory policies towards gays, partners of gays and family members of gays unacceptable. I hope that you can find the deccency and fairness within yourselves to reverse this horrible policy immediately...... Individual Comment Los Angeles. September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR002223.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, December 19, 2001 6:16 AM 911--Equal Treatment for All Surviving Partners December 19, 2001 Dear Mr. Kenneth Zwick, I write as a member of Amnesty International, a worldwide human rights movement committed to ensuring respect for the basic human rights of people without discrimination, in support of equal access to benefits under the September 11 Victims Relief Fund for all victims, regardless of sexual orientation or marital status. As you know, the United States has committed to uphold international human rights standards, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which prohibit arbitrary discrimination. As you consider rules for administering the relief fund, I ask that you apply basic international human rights standards, and the general principle of equality, by including among relatives eligible for compensation those who lost their life partners, as well as de facto parents or children, without regard to sexual orientation or marital status. The State of New York has already adopted such a policy, granting compensation benefits "on a showing of mutual interdependence with the victim, in recognition that anyone who shared with the victim living expenses, day to day activities and the emotional bonds of family deserves help in this time of need." Many lesbian and gay people were killed in the September 11th attacks. Since then, lesbian and gay surviving partners of those killed have had mixed results in obtaining equal treatment at the local level in the distribution of relief funds by private and state agencies. An inclusive policy on the part of the federal government would help establish an important principle for other such funds. In compensating victims, real justice will be served only when all families - and all types of families - impacted by the human rights tragedy of September 11 are treated with dignity and equality. Thank you for considering my concerns. I look forward to hearing from you about your efforts to ensure that all surviving victims of the September 11 attacks have equal access to the relief fund. Sincerely, Individual Comment Springfield, OH September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA002523.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, December 18, 2001 12:01 AM Equal Access to Benefits under the September 11 Victims Relief Fund December 18, 2001 Dear Mr. Kenneth Zwick, I write as a member of Amnesty International, a worldwide human rights movement committed to ensuring respect for the basic human rights of people without discrimination, in support of equal access to benefits under the September 11 Victims Relief Fund for all victims, regardless of sexual orientation or marital status. As you know, the United States has committed to uphold international human rights standards, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which prohibit arbitrary discrimination. As you consider rules for administering the relief fund, I ask that you apply basic international human rights standards, and the general principle of equality, by including among relatives eligible for compensation those who lost their life partners, as well as de facto parents or children, without regard to sexual orientation or marital status. The State of New York has already adopted such a policy, granting compensation benefits "on a showing of mutual interdependence with the victim, in recognition that anyone who shared with the victim living expenses, day to day activities and the emotional bonds of family deserves help in this time of need." Many lesbian and gay people were killed in the September 11th attacks. Since then, lesbian and gay surviving partners of those killed have had mixed results in obtaining equal treatment at the local level in the distribution of relief funds by private and state agencies. An inclusive policy on the part of the federal government would help establish an important principle for other such funds. In compensating victims, real justice will be served only when all families - and all types of families - impacted by the human rights tragedy of September 11 are treated with dignity and equality. Thank you for considering my concerns. I look forward to hearing from you about your efforts to ensure that all surviving victims of the September 11 attacks have equal access to the relief fund. Sincerely, Individual Comment New York, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-18 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA002565.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-18 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Tuesday, February 12, 2002 1:43 AM victims compensation Answer this for Me: Why is it that the families of Sept. 11, 2001 can file a claim for compensation within months of this terrorist attack, but the families of Khobar Towers, American Embassy bombings, USS Cole have been waiting years and are still waiting, does this mean their lives were less important because some were military? " THESE FAMILIES HAVE RECEIVED "NO" COMPENSATION FOR THE LOSS OF THEIR LOVED ONES" Anyone that tell you these families have been compensated is a flat out liar. My family received my sister Life Insurance which my sister paid for. My sister was murdered by a man that has millions of dollars he uses to fund terrorism, and we cannot file a wrongful death suit until the United States Government captures him and brings him to justice, and by the looks of things the United States Government will never do that....so my family receives NO JUSTICE and her murderer gets away to destroy another family. Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-02-12 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojP000497.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-02-12 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Saturday, March 16, 2002 5:57 PM Calling Americans worthless? I am appalled that now that the furror has abated, you intend on discriminating against legitimate American heroes families in favor of illegal aliens and even fetuses!  Gay-Americans gave their lives for their country on September 11, Gay-Americans were in those towers, on those planes and most likely in the Pentagon on September 11 and they all had loved ones.  Some had partners, some children and you have the gall to tell their survivors that they have NO value?  Perhaps should not have helped overcome the terrorists in control of Flt. 93 and let it hit the Capitol Building or White House, allowing our government to have to scramble to assemble replacements for all the Senators and Congressmen who would have been killed.  He didn't though.  didn't ask the sexual orientation, nor even the religion of the fireman down that he was giving last rites to when he was killed so why is their country telling the world that these people are worthless?  They didn't judge you and your worth to be saved, the least you can do is compensate the partners and children of the gay victims of September 11 equally with the partners and children of the heterosexual victims of September 11.   The Christian faith may judge homosexuals as evil and condemned to Hell but I was taught growing up that there is a separation between church and state.  Perhaps America is no longer the land of the free and home of the brave after all. Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-16 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR001155.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-16 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, November 28, 2001 1:15 PM Kenneth L. Zwick Director Civil Division Office of Management Programs U.S. Department of Justice Please ensure that compensation eligibility is inclusive of all survivor-families - that life partners, parents, children, or any alternative family structure whose stability depended on shared contribution be protected and their eligibilty rights insured - regardless of sexual orientation or marital status. -- Regards, Individual Comment Charlotte, NC September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-28 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA000077.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-11-28 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Tuesday, March 12, 2002 8:22 AM Compensation of partners of gay and lesbian victims Please reconsider your announced policy of not compensating gay and lesbian partners of victims of 9/11. The rationale for this policy is weak. Surely the federal government can assert primacy over state laws in these circumstances, especially when compensation will be given to others the legitimacy of whose claim would be questioned by others. Individual Comment Rockville, MD September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-12 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR000365.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-12 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Sunday, March 17, 2002 11:55 AM September 11th Fund benefits I am very concerned that gay and lesbian partners of those who died on September 11 are not automatically going to receive the same benefits as heterosexual spouses. FOR THE MEMORY OF , and so many more... Don't let their deaths be in vain. I could not beleave what I read in the "Meet the Press" transcripts as it applied to the 911 Fund. According to the excerpt below if state law discriminates against gay people, then so will Feinberg and the 911 Fund. The problem for gay Americans who lost loved ones on September 11 is that most states do not legally recognize gay relationships, and the very few that do tend to do so only for state employees, not for citizens at large. And while a handful of cities do in fact recognize such relationships, under Feinberg's formula, it's the state's law that counts, not the city's. What is the purpose of the Fund? If it is to help in its on small way to rectify such a national tragidy as it effected loved ones and families, then why are specific loved ones and families being leftout? The gay people that have been robbed by this tragidy are so small in number compared to all others that are not being discriminated against. Why cause such a hurt to these people when it would only take so little to help them. Please reconsided the statement made by Kenneth Feinberg on NBC's "Meet the Press," March 10, 2002 and make this thing right for all people -- not just the ones that are socially exceptable. On this six-month anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, don't let Kenneth Feinberg and the September 11th Fund tell the American people that regardless of whether a gay man was one of the four heroes on United Flight 93 who saved the US Congress and the White House from utter annihilation, the 911 Fund plans to discriminate against an American hero because most of the country sanctioned such discrimination prior to September 11. Please, Please help all people who were directly effected by this national tragidy! Please don't allow any of the heros to be seen as anything but heros. Thank you Individual Comment Houston, TX "[Gays and lesbians are] left out of my program to the extent that their own state doesn't include them. I cannot get into a position in this program, which has a one-and-a-half or two-year life start second-guessing what the state of New York or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or the state of Virginia or New Jersey, how they treat same-sex partners, domestic live-ins, etc. I simply say this: What does your state law say about who is eligible? If your state law makes you eligible, I will honor state law. If it doesn't, I go with the state. Otherwise, Tim, I would find myself getting sued in every state by people claiming that I'm not following how the state distributes money. I can't get into that local battle. I've got to rely on state law." - Kenneth Feinberg on NBC's "Meet the Press," March 10, 2002. September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-17 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR001399.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-17