978 20 70359 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, December 27, 2001 10:24 PM Support Equal Access to Crisis Relief Benefits for Surviving Gay and Lesbian Partners! December 27, 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 White Sulphur Springs, WV September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-27 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 dojN001033.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. 2001-12-27 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 9:46 AM Equal Access to Crisis Relief 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 Jacksonville, IL 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 dojA002893.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. Thursday, January 17, 2002 4:47 PM RE: comments on Interim Final Rule 17 January 2002 To: The Special Master of the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund Re: Interim Final Rule I have reviewed the Interim Final Rule that is published on the Victim Compensation Fund Web site. In addition, I heard on "Morning Edition" (the morning news show on NPR) this morning that relatives of the September 11 victims are meeting in New York City today to protest the proposed guidelines. Since I am a family member of a victim (my father, of Green Brook, NJ, was killed in the World Trade Center) but I am unable to be personally present at the protest, I wanted to share my concerns with you via email. In particular, I am very concerned with the possibility that some victims' families will receive NO compensation (or nearly none) once their collateral sources of income have been deducted from their proposed settlement. While I understand the desire to offset some of the economic portion of the settlement (since, after all, substantial collateral sources may somewhat reduce the economic loss), I find it offensive to suggest that the non-economic loss ("pain and suffering") could be fully compensated by life insurance payments or other sources of income. To be sure, no amount of money can replace the lost loved ones. But I believe that, regardless of the victim's economic situation, every victim's family deserves some minimum payment - the non-economic loss amount that has been specified for "pain and suffering" - to acknowledge the pain and suffering they have been experiencing, and continue to experience, since September 11. Further, if any family member stands to receive nothing from the fund (as it appears may be the case with my own mother), then that family member has no incentive to sign away his or her right to sue. Because one justification for this fund is to limit wrongful-death lawsuits and the airlines' liability, it would seem politically and economically prudent to guarantee some minimum award to each family, regardless of collateral sources. Therefore, I am writing to ask that you (and Congress, as appropriate) change the guidelines such that collateral sources may offset ONLY economic loss. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Individual Comment Tucson, AZ September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-17 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 dojN001952.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. 2002-01-17 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 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 07, 2001 5:20 PM Battery Park City Home Owner. I was just made aware of your website, so I am writing in hopes of getting a response. Ever since the attacks I have had very little patience or will to write letters to claim anything. I have applied to FEMA and they provided me with a check which barely covered one month's rent in New York City. I have to agree with my fellow neighbors that we would like to be helped in some way by the government. The immediate help I see that can be made is reducing the taxes in BPC so that owners and renters have financial incentive to stay. All of what Kathy Hansen has written in her is true and to the point: the neighborhood is demolished, the air quality is unbearable, the transportation is impossible, and the short term or long term solutions don't seem to rectify any of these issues. I have had my place professionally cleaned, including all the carpeting, sheets, pillows and furniture. I took it upon myself to paint the entire apartment in hopes of covering up the dark black soot that covered my belongings. I have purchased new sheets, bedding, towels, and 2 industrial HEPA filters, and am still coughing uncomfortabley. On the streets, a lot of the shops and stores remain closed, not the mention all the facilities which were our haven in the WFC and WTC. Instead we have visitors now by the hundreds, carrying flags, taking pictures of anything horrific they can find to eternalize Sept 11, and yet are asked if we could 'return to our normal lives'. I am merely a concerned BPC condo owner. I see the prices have plummeted because renters are leaving by the dozens, if not more. The damages to the market value of these properties will never be recooped. We have written letters to all the officials asking for them to reduce taxes so that we can sustain through the rebuilding of our area. People DO need an incentive until things really do go back to normal which will not be until the new WTC (whatever it may be) is completely built. If you can in any way help us in these hard times, it would be benefiting approximately 2 million people who are affected by this in the immediate area. Thank you for your time Individual Comment Battery Park City, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-07 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 dojW000201.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. 2001-11-07 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, December 17, 2001 12:33 AM September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs U.S. Department of Justice I urge you to include surviving same-sex partners of victims of this horrible tragedy in the victims compensation fund. It is time to recognize the common bonds between all Americans and to demonstrate unequivocally that in this country we do mean liberty and justice for all. Please hold in your heart, mind and soul the memory of and all the other nameless gay and lesbian victims of September 11th and do everything you can to embrace and support their surviving partners and families during this awful time of grief and heart break. Individual Comment San Diego, CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-17 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 dojA002092.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. 2001-12-17 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 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. January 8, 2002 To: Kenneth L. Zwick Director, Office of Management Programs Civil Division, USDOJ Re: September 11th Victims Compensation Fund 2001 Dear Sir: I have reviewed the USDOJ's interim final rules for the September 11th Victims Compensation Fund of 2001 and have the following comments: 1. The intent of the fund is not only to minimize pain for survivors and the loved ones of those lost, but to reduce the cost and pain to our society that would result from lengthy litigation in a public forum. I feel the USDOJ failed to meet these goals of the victim's fund. This has become obvious to anyone involved since as of January 7th only 100 people have filed claims. The most troubling aspect of the final rules is that it minimizes every life lost or person injured in this terrorist attack. Never in the history of our country have we experienced such a horrific act of murder and terrorism on our soil. To suggest that the emotional loss, pain and suffering could be compared to anything we every experienced before is absurd and desecrates the memory of those who died in this attack. The government has an obligation to these citizens and their families to acknowledge this pain which was caused by our government's failure to act on known weaknesses in our country's security. Though the fund will not pass judgement on who is to blame, the Special Master, Congress and the President know in their hearts, the government failed to protect its citizens. The amount of $250,000 for these people's lives is disgraceful. People who sue for car accidents in which a person did not even intentionally hurt or kill someone receive far more pain and suffering. How can this be the case? The special master said that he can not and will not play Solomon, yet in setting such an arbitrary number he is doing just that. I urge that this number be increased to at least $500,000 and not be subject to offsets. The collateral offsets should only be applied to economic losses, sine the collateral offsets established in the Air Transportation Safety Act are monies that are designed solely to support families economically, not to ease their pain and suffering. 2. The USDOJ needs to provide exact details of what constitutes collateral sources. As the rules currently stand there is so much uncertainty for a person to waive their right to sue. The government must eliminate this uncertainty, so that when a person calculates their claims value they can be almost 100% certain of the amount they would receive before waiving their right to sue. As I stated in my first response to the USDOJ, improper awards will lead to a public outcry since claimants will have waived their right to sue and can not appeal their award. This would lead to claimants feeling that not only did the Federal Government fail them on September 11th, but also they mislead them and duped them into an unfair settlement. The plan as it is currently set up has already led to public outcries and a minimal number of people have filed for claims under the plan. This alone should make it clear to the USDOJ that the plan they have set up is inadequate and lacks the compassion it so needs. 3. I am strongly opposed to any offsets from collateral sources such as insurance that would be due a decedent's estate under normal circumstances. The statute specifically states, that, "The Special Master shall reduce the amount of compensation determined(under paragraph(1)(B)(ii) by the amount of collateral source compensation the claimant has received or is entitled to receive as a result of the terrorist attacks are not part of the collateral offset. The USDOJ policy takes funds from the injured party and in effect give it to the government who itself must bear some responsibility for the claimants injuries or deaths because it did not provide proper airline security laws as confirmed by the hasty passage of the passage of the airline safety act. Reducing awards for life insurance that a decedent purchased to protect their family and estate under the assumption of normal death, not solely because of the terrorist attack of September 11th should not be considered a collateral source under the strict wording of the statute, I believe that offsets for workman's compensation death benefits and other death benefits paid specifically as a result of the attack are reasonable offsets. 4. The statute specifically states that pension funds are to be considered collateral sources. The IRS specifically defines a pension plan as a defined benefit plan that typically pays a fixed income to a person(see attached page with definition from IRS publication 575). The company and not the individual fund these funds. Many people have 401 K plans which the IRS defines as a defined contribution plan. These plans are provided by the employer but are significantly if not entirely funded by the individual. Therefore, I submit that accordingly 401 K funds as well as IRA's and individual annuities are not to be considered collateral sources in accordance with the government's own definition of these funds. 5. I strongly support the USDOJ's belief that claims should proceed without economic experts. However as the rules currently are set up this is not possible. Therefore, to accomplish this task the USDOJ must establish a set of simple formulas for determining economic compensation and spell out the exact offsets a claim would have held against it that can not be open for interpretation. I feel strongly that this be done so a claimant is not ask to waive their right to sue without knowing the exact amount of compensation they could expect as a minimum. 6. New York State Attorney General Elliot Spitzer said, it is wrong to demand that families waive their right to sue before they are told what they will ultimately receive from their claim. I agree with the Attorney General, which is why I propose that the plan allow claimants to file their claims and request an award determination. If the claimant would like to accept the award as determined, they must waive their right to sue. If the claimant disagrees with the award determination, it can be appealed as stated in the proposed rules. However, in order to appeal the award determination they must waive their right to sue since they have a guaranteed minimum award. I believe my proposal is fair and equitable and meets the requirements fo the statue. I also feel it would cause no additional burden or delays to the plan. It simply changes the point in the process at which the waiving of the right to sue is done. I strongly believe that the USDOJ needs modify the current rules. I believe my suggestion in this letter are fair to claimants, provide a strong incentive to avoid litigation, encourage the use of the Victims Compensation Fund and conform to all the rules set out in the statue. I would welcome an opportunity to discuss my comments with Mr. Feinberg. If Mr. Feinberg feels this would be constructive, please contact me at the number below. Sincerely, Individual Comment Kings Park, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-08 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 dojN002399.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. 2002-01-08 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 6:01 PM Emergency Relief for All Families 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 dojA003603.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. 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 Brooklyn,NY 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 dojA004776.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. 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 New Haven, CT 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 dojA004433.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, November 21, 2001 Comments on Notice of Inquiry and Advance Notice of Rulemaking Dear Mr. Zwick: The bifurcated approach as indicated in comment W000413 by the General Counsel of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc. has a great deal of merit as do a great many of the other 400 plus responses to date. These responses indicate a great deal of pain and suffering. In these comments I would like to focus on those who suffered the most, i.e. the 3,000 plus who lost their life and those that they left behind. I would like to suggest a possible simplified and fair claims approach for the economic loss of earnings for each deceased member of this group. This is only one loss under the category of economic losses. The economic compensation for each estate might utilize the following formula: A = X (65 - Y) - Z where A equals the Award for economic loss of earnings X equals total 2001 annualized employee compensation or in the case of self employed their net profit from Schedule C of Form 1040 for the year 2000 plus contributions for their pension and profit sharing plans. Y equals age at last birthday Z equals collateral amounts received as ultimately interpretated under the law If the deceased were a 45 year old employee earnina an annualized salary and bonus of $80,000 during 2001, and had a employee term insurance policy of $200,000 and no other benefits, the award might be: A = $80,000 (65 - 45) - $200,000 or A = $1,400,000 A floor for these types of losses might be $1,500,000. If that amount were the floor, then the award solely for loss of earnings would be increased to this higher amount. This analysis assumes that the annual rate of increase in compensation or earnings exactly equals the discount rate that would be utilized to obtain a net present value for the future stream of these earnings or compensation. While it would appear that this assumption is biased against the decedent's estate, under this simplified approach it might be acceptable. While this is admittedly an overly simplistic approach to something extremely complicated, it appears to work reasonably well. It also serves two very important considerations: 1) Those who decide to waive their rights and proceed under the Fund will have ample notice of the consequences of their decision and 2) It treats all members in the class fairly by removing the "needs" analysis which has proven unworkable. If this doesn't provide an acceptable monetary award for the loss of earnings, then the alternative approach as outlined in comment W000413 could be utilized for those special situations that require more analysis, documentation and hearings. Thank you. Individual Comment Hackensack, NJ September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-21 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 dojW000642.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. 2001-11-21 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 4:20 PM do not descriminate 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 Long Beach, CA 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 dojA003576.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. Sunday, March 17, 2002 6:56 PM Unequal compensation for victims & their families I am outraged that while the Compensation Fund even extends help to the families of illegal aliens (which I do agree with), gay people's partners are not considered equals to heterosexual's spouses by the fund. This kind of discrimination is shocking, and frankly, un-American. What about the partner of , the of the plane that crashed into the Pentagon? And why forget about the partner of , who was one of the men who help divert one of the planes from the hijackers' intended target? And what about the many others? Are they to be passed over while others just like them--except for their sexual orientation--are taken care of? Individual Comment 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 dojR001528.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 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, January 05, 2002 4:35 PM Compensation Where in the Constitution does it give Congress the right to give my tax money to victims of any tragedy? I have had lightning strike my chimney and received nothing. Individual Comment Marblehead, MA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-05 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 dojN001358.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. 2002-01-05 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. Wednesday, March 20, 2002 1:37 PM Not Proud to be an American I would much rather I had been born in any one of the Scandinavian countries where they respect the rights of ALL citizens and guarantee the rights of ALL citizens. I grew up pledging allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, but as I discovered the abhorrent discrimination that our government and its people imposes on many minority groups, especially gays and lesbians, I soon learned that America really wasn't the land of the free. It was instead the land of opression. I started to see Scandinavia as the way America is supposed to be. You are guaranteed equal rights as a gay human being in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and Iceland. Their governments don't even have a separation of Church and State, and they are able to recognize the rights of ALL human beings under the law. And Scandinavia would pay equal monies to gay victims of any tragedy that might befall a mix of citizens. People are people. Tax-paying citizens are tax-paying citizens. Our American government does not see it that way. If our government does not honor the rights of ALL victims from the 9/11 tragedy, then I as a gay citizen should have the right to not pay taxes. I'm either a citizen and you recognize me as that or you don't get money to support the country that I was born and raised in, it's that simple. To deny rights to citizens that work hard and pay their taxes and contribute to the value of American freedom and privilege is in essence a governmental crime against freedom. I even refuse to be charitable to any causes in this country because this country refuses to acknowledge my equal rights. I do not want to help any other citizen in this country who will not stand up for me and fight the injustice of this country. And if families of gay victims of 9/11 do not receive fair and equal compensation, I will remember that when I walk by a heterosexual in peril; I will not be a hero and I will let them suffer. That's how you want it, Mr. Kenneth Zwick? I once saved a child from drowning in a lake-he would have died had I not jumped in to save him-but you would rather I let the child drown next time. Gay Man Saves Drowning Child, America Says Gays Are Going To Hell. Individual Comment Minneapolis, MN 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 dojR002366.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. Wednesday, December 19, 2001 12:43 AM How about 'Liberty & Justice for All', eh? 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 Moraga, CA 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 dojA002583.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 19, 2001 8:54 PM Consideration for all 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 Berwick, PA 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 dojA003799.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. 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 Cape Girardeau, MO 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 dojA001873.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. FOR THE MEMORY OF: To Whom It May Concern: I am a survivor of the tragic attacks on the World Trade Towers on September 11th and have just been made aware of the unfair exclusion of same-sex partners of compensation for their losses. This is saddest and most embarrassing issue that has come out of this tragic event. Especially when you consider the first victim of these attacks was (Death Certificate ) who was a gay man. The rest of the country recognizes , a gay man, as a hero for sacrificing his life to fight the terrorist on the airliner that crashed in Pennsylvania. Just last week I saw an interview with his mother who appeared on national television to say how proud she was of her son, no matter his sexual orientation. Your department must take another look at how insensitive and ompletely homophobic your decision appears to the world. We are living in the twenty-first century. Join the rest of the nation and recognize human beings as individuals without prejudice. When I was on the World Trade Center Plaza and saw the tragic results of the first attack I thought I had seen the worst sight of my life; people leaping to their deaths to escape the fire. I never imagined I would be standing under an explosion and a ball of fire that left flying debris, body parts and fire all around me when the South Tower was hit. I ran for my life. My only thought was to return to the comfort of my apartment and to the one I love; my boyfriend of seven years. Had it not been for his continued support, financial and otherwise, I could not have achieved the status of a bank officer for an international bank in only five years. As an artist it was difficult for him to support two people on his income but he did because he believed in me. Why is my relationship so different than those who were not as lucky as I was to escape with my life? O trust you will re-evaluate your decision and decide to do what is right and just and award ALL those individuals who lost loved ones. Not just those you deem as "politically correct." Individual Comment New York, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-04-10 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 dojR002922.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. 2002-04-10 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 17, 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 Surry, ME September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-17 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 dojA005092.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. 2001-12-17 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 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, November 09, 2001 4:55 PM Affected Victim I am (was) a resident in North Battery Park City at the time of the attacks on the World Trade Center. I have a southwest facing apartment which overlooked the World Trade Center towers. I was home during the time of the attacks as I had been severed by my employer. In fact, that morning I was on the phone with a business contact discussing possible job opportunity when I heard a loud explosion. I originally believe the noise to be thunder but it was a clear beautiful day and then I heard the blood curdling screams from the street. I looked out my window and saw a gaping hole in the North tower. I put CNN on the television which indicated that a plane had crashed into the tower. As I was watching the most saddening events of my life unfold, I watched another plane crash into the south tower. I felt relatively fine for my personal safety and remained in my apartment until the south tower collapsed. As I watched the dust and smoke billow up my street, I realized that my safety was in serious jeopardy. Who knew how a tower would fall? I was under the very real concern that the North tower (the one closest to my house by only five blocks) may tumble sideways and not implode. I hurriedly grabbed my cell phone and wallet and ran down 26 stories. Approximately five minutes walk up West Street, I turned around and watched the North tower collapse and the dust and debris envelope my building. The following two months have been extremely trying on so many dimensions. As so many people in the city, I am thankful that I was able to walk away however I have had to face my mortality. So many of us could have been there. Two years ago, I worked on the 100th floor of the north tower (almost all those people from Marsh McLennan are missing and believed to be dead), six months ago I walked through the towers everyday to my office on 65 Broad street at 8:45am, as a consultant I flew weekly. Only luck and circumstance saved my life. The tangible effects are easier to quantify. I was homeless for a month. And then, after returning to my home, I realized that the area was unliveable. I believe that there are very real health concerns from living near Ground Zero. While health professionals are doing their best to determine the health effects, the real answer is that nobody knows. The real concern is that the health problems will not present themselves for twenty years. I do not want to be a statistic in twenty years with some type of cancer or respiratory disease which the government will be apologizing for with money too little too late. The best solution is to move out of the area which has cost me an exorbitant amount of money. The management company has charged me a one month penalty to break my lease, I had to pay a broker to find an apartment in a weeks time and I had to pay movers to move my items. The total cost is approximating $10,000. Furthermore, the events of the 11th have adversely effected the economy. I was poised to start working with this new company who now is no longer hiring. I have been looking for employment since the attacks with no luck. While the economy was definitely slowing down, there were positive signs prior to the 11th which are no longer there. I am faced with the very real prospect that I will not find employment in the next 6 months (and that is with an undergraduate degree in Economics and an MBA from Columbia University). If that is the case, I will not be able to afford to stay in the city and will have to relocate again. As I indicated before, I am thankful that I was able to walk away from the attacks on the 11th, I am most certainly a victim of the events. There is no compensation for the psychological innocence lost, for the fact that I don't sleep at night, for the fact that I jump everytime I hear a loud explosion or sirens, however, the monetary costs associated can be redressed. Thank you Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-09 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 dojW000298.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. 2001-11-09