dojA004460.xml

dojA004460.xml

born-digital

email

yes

no

2001-12-14

Special Master Kenneth R. Feinberg
September 11th Victim Compensation Fund
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20530

December 14, 2001

To Mr. Feinberg:

I am writing to urge you to treat fairly all surviving families of the tragedy on September
11th, including the children and families of low-wage workers and gay and lesbian families.

Under the usual rules based on lost wages, the survivors of a bond trader might receive
thousands of times as much compensation as the survivors of a dishwasher in one of
the restaurants destroyed. I am urging you to set a high minimum compensation level to
lessen the disparities.

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. 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
Brooklyn NY

2001-12-14