75 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. Sunday, December 23, 2001 11:38 PM equal access to crisis relief benefits December 23, 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 Albuquerque, NM September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-23 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 dojN000807.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. 2001-12-23 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. TO: Mr. Kenneth Feinberg Special Master Dear Mr. Feinberg, Please see my attached comments regarding the Victims' Compensation Fund. I would very much appreciate your time and consideration in reading my letter. As a fiancee, I am left in an extremely difficult financial situation. I hope you will take my situation into account when you are establishing the rules of the fund. Thank you, Attachment1: December 16,2001 Mr. Kenneth R. Feinberg Special Master Dear Mr. Feinberg: I turned 24 this October and wish wholeheartedly that I did not have to write this letter. I would give anything to have my life turned back to September 10th when I was writing thank you notes for my fiance's and my engagement gifts, while watching Monday Night Football in our apartment. I thought 2001 was the best year of my life. My fiance, asked me to marry him in April. I now think of 2001 as the year I became a widow before I even had the chance to say, "I do". I haven't spent a night apart from him since I graduated in May of 1999. At first, we kept separate apartments, though we were never at one without one another and then we moved in together. My life stopped existing as soon as the plane hit his building. I stood outside the trade center not being able to do anything for the man I loved more than anything in this world. I went to bed alone that night for the first time in two and a half years. I have never been so lonely in my entire life and have never felt such pain in my heart every minute of the day. I am writing to you because the rules of the victim's compensation fund are soon to be established. Many of these people were in their 20's and 30's just beginning a life of their own, fiancees, who have been told we have no legal rights to the men we would have called our husbands and were supposed to spend the rest of our lives with. We receive no Social Security, no Worker's Compensation, we cannot be named next of kin therefore we cannot be made administrator of their estates. Our names cannot be listed on their death certificates as spouses even though they asked us to be their wives. However, our addresses can be listed as the deceased's address since we lived together. We have gone from being the most important person in our husband-to-be's life, the ones they shared everything with, to being acknowledged as the equivalent of a good friend because we don't have a piece of paper that says "marriage certificate". I always thought marriage was about love, trust and commitment, but I have now discovered all of that means nothing at this point because I don't have a piece of paper with the words "marriage certificate" written on the top of it. However, I am left with countless letters, cards and notes stating that he couldn't wait to be with me forever, that I am his future, how we will be the best team and make our life and family decisions together. I have the ring he slipped on my finger that symbolizes the eternity of our love. I know that he purposely waited so long to ask me to marry him because he said "I wanted to wait until I made enough money to solely support our family" - the exact reason he waited may now cost him the ability to carry through on his promise. If we were married, I would be taken care of financially; but because we are not, I most likely will be on my own as soon as the charity stops because no government agency will recognize that the word engaged means "to be married". We may not have a marriage certificate, not because we didn't have plans to get one on September 7, 2002, but because we were robbed of having the chance to sign one. , we have every wedding contract for our completely planned wedding that we won't get to have. This summer when I thought about moving the date up and changing all the already finished plans, The ceremony is for everyone else - a signed piece of paper means nothing"... if only he knew now. We had our engagement party on September 8th with all of our family and friends. We had a lifetime of plans. We were planning our honeymoon. We had just purchased new furniture for our home. We knew in two years that we would buy a house and start a family. My therapist explained to me that with homicide it may take five years before a person can think clearly again. I explained to her that in five years I was supposed to be in my home with my husband taking care of our three year old and pregnant with our second child, The reason I write you is that there are countless wives and fiancees who share my feelings. We all had planned our lives with the men we called our husbands and had them instantly erased on September 11th. However, fiancees are now left with nothing, while the wives are told they will be taken care of forever. We shared our home and all of its expenses. I have received assistance from several charities. For the most part, they have treated me as a spouse because we were engaged and did live together as any other married couple. There was no difference between or a couple who was married for three months or three years, besides a piece of paper. The difference is now. Any government agency or court feels that because they have a piece of paper that they deserve to have one less worry in life and be taken care of financially. However, because I don't have this piece of paper I receive no benefits. I realize there has also been a lot of emphasis placed on domestic partners and I agree that they deserve benefits as well. However, there has been no emphasis on fiancees. I personally don't consider living together one year or more a guaranteed commitment between two people. I believe being engaged and living together symbolizes a lifetime commitment, marriage. already publicly announced and celebrated his engagement and desire to commit his life to me when he asked me to be his wife. We had made the ultimate commitment to each other. which I believe holds much greater value than a couple that has simply lived together. This is the reason that I ask that the fiancees be treated equally with spouses. If you can prove that you were engaged and already living together as a family (with documents) then that to me is as legitimate as a marriage certificate. I have our bridal registries, every wedding contract for September 7, 2002 from the church, reception, band, photographer, florist and caterer, the engagement party invitation and pictures from it. I have our lease, renter's insurance, and every piece of mail that goes to the same address for the both of us. I know I have everything possible that proved and my intentions of having our wedding and currently exisiting as a committed financially inter-dependent couple. I know that I cannot maintain even a remote resemblence to the lifestyle that we lived without assistance. Instead of making financial decisions about our future with my husband-to-be, I am forced to face the possiblity that may no longer be able to care for me unless the legislation is revised to acknowledge our commitment to each other to be husband and wife. Unfortunately with the death of a special person, like , there are countless people who are deeply saddened and affected. This was simply seen by the 2000 people that attended memorial service. However, there is only one person as a result of death who was affected financially. Unfortunately, that person is me, his fiancee. I was told that the Victim's Compensation fund was set-up to provide long-term financial assistance to the people who were financially dependent on the victim's income. This fund cannot serve its purpose to the people in their 20's and 30's who didn't have the chance to "legally" marry those they had asked, unless fiancees are allowed to file with the same fights as spouses. Simply stated, fiancees are just as financially dependent upon the men in their lives as the wives are. We are one in the same. At some point, every married couple was engaged. My current financial situation without is petrifying to me. I went from being a well-off couple with a bright future to a single person trying to figure out how long she can pay rent for before the charity is gone. income was approximately 3/4 of our combined income. Our rent is more that my entire monthly income. and I lived as one. He always told me "there is no yours and mine, only ours". Now because we were robbed of the chance of having our wedding and there is no official marriage certificate, I receive no help except from the charities. I had made each other beneficiaries on our life insurance policies, but since the records were destroyed, the company must pay the money to the next of kin, his parents. I can receive no government aid or have access to his estate based on New York State laws. I am relying solely on charitable aid to help me keep our apartment and pay our living expenses. I know the charity will stop and I have no idea how I will survive long-term if I am not allowed to file with the Victims' Compensation Fund I am fully in favor of all of ther terms that other wives I know are asking for: not capping the amount to be paid out; allowing us to view the amount to be paid before we sign away our rights to sue; allowing each person the right to an individual hearing; and not including life insurance policies, charitable contributions and other aid received into the equation that will determine our husbands "rest-of-their-life-income". However, my biggest fear is that you will exclude a large group of people who are right now being unrecognized by the government by the government and desperately need the same long-term financial assitance as a wife. Fiancees are facing the same emotional pain that "legal" spouses are. We too have to learn to exist without the men we knew as our husbands. We also have to find a way to pay our bills. While wives, who are treated as the next-of-kin, have first rights to their husbands' estates and what they considered "our income", the way the legislation is currently being proposed is that the victim's estate has to file in the Victims' Compensation Fund. In my case, and in many other fiancees, this would allow the parents to collect "our income". Parents have suffered an unbelievable loss as well. Their pain and suffering cannot be measured and they should be compensated for it. However, theuy did not suffer a direct financial loss as a result of the victim's lost income. They are able to pay their mortgage with the same money they had in the bank pre-September 11th and their life plans have not been altered financially. My understanding of the Victims' Compensation Fund is that it is supposed to provide long-term financial assistance to those who were specifically dependent on the victim's income. If fiancees aren't specically written into the legislation as being the primary benficiary (along with spouses) of the fund, then the availability and the sole purpose of the fund becomes null and void and only allows monies to be distributed to people who are hurting emotionally, but not financially. I believe the fund should have different levels of filing. The first level would be for dependents upon the victim's income. This would include spouses, fiancees, domestic partners, and children. They would be eligible to receive the victim's remaining workable life salary as well as monies for pain and suffering. The second level would be those who have endured pain and suffering. This would include parents and siblings of the victim. If the fund is laid out in this mannerm it will properly distribute monetary compensation to the correct parties. This will elimnate any parties being "left out" of the fund and further reduce the number of wrongful death suits that would be filed if they weren't included. With the charitable aid I estimate to receive, I will only be able to remain in our apartment and maintain an already reduced lifestyle for one year at the most. A person holding a marriage certificate, even for one day, will be allowed to grieve properly because they know they are at least financially secure for the rest of their lives. I truly must believe and put my faith and trust in God, you and the government that you will take into consideration the people's ages that were lost. I pray you will acknowledge that simply because many of the people who lost their lives on the 11th were cheated out of their actual weddings, does not mean that you can't help them keep their promises to those they left behind, to always take care of them financially. None of the money that I could receive could ever take the place of . All that it would allow me to do is to have one less thing on my plate to deal with. I feel that I cannot grieve properly for the man I was supposed to spend the rest of my life with because I am constantly concerned about how I am going to pay our bills. I ask that fiancees (with sufficient documented proof) be allowed to file with the same "next-of-kin" statues as a spouse with Victims' Compensation Fund. I ask that the Victims' Compensation Fund not read "the victim's estate may file", but that there be an order of preference in filing, with spouses/fiancees/domestic partners being allowed to file first. The deceased chose to spend the rest of their lives with and it is only fair to the deceased that their wishes be honored. We, as spouses, fiancees, and domestic partners, are the only ones who are left to worry about our financial future. We have already been deprived of our life partners and our weddings, please don't deprive fiancees of the financial security our loved ones would have wanted us to have simply because of a marriage certificate. If the Victims' Compensation Fund does read "the victim's estate may file" then I, along with many others, will be left with nothing and my fiance's two promises to me " I will always be with you and I will always take care of you" will then both have been taken away from him and I. I thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely, Individual Comment New York, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-16 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 dojA005118.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. 2001-12-16 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. Tuesday, November 20, 2001 12:55 AM Sept. 11 eligible victims Dear Sir/Madam, I understand that you are accepting public comments on implementation of the Sept. 11 victim compensation fund. Regarding your Topic #5 on Claimant Eligibility, I request that you consider those unborn children who were killed along with their pregnant mothers as a result of the September 11 terrorist attacks as "eligible victims." Individual Comment Savage, Minnesota September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-20 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 dojW000421.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. 2001-11-20 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. Thursday, December 13, 2001 3:20 PM Fwd: Compensation ATT: Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs, Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice I appreciate very much that the Department of Justice has invited public comments to guide the process of writing the regulations that will govern implementation of the "September 11 Victim Compensation Fund" set up by our government. In my opinion this fund would best be made available to ALL families and those near and dear to victims of the Sept. 11 attack , whether they are gay or straight or whatever. It is shocking and Un-American to discriminate at a time like this. Please do the right thing, don't discriminate. Thank you for listening. Individual Comment 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 dojA001574.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. Sunday, December 09, 2001 9:46 PM Comment on how 9/11 DOJ victims fund should be distributed To: Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs U.S. Department of Justice The Justice Department should include 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. Please follow the example already set by New York Governor Pataki in 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." Sincerely, Individual Comment San Francisco, CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-09 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 dojA001392.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. 2001-12-09 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 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 21, 2001 10:54 AM fair compensation December 21, 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 - affected 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. 2001-12-21 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 dojN000410.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. 2001-12-21 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. Friday, December 07, 2001 9:40 AM comments Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs, Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Dear Mr. Zwick, I would encourage you to provide adequate levels of support to all people who were affected by the September 11th tragedies. The Victim Compensation Fund should be an equal opportunity assistance fund that supports all people regardless of their race, color, nationality, gender, sexual orientation or disability. I would hope the Victim Compensation Fund will not discriminate against people in their hour of need. There has been enough suffering and now we must all pull together and help everyone who needs assistance. Thank you. Individual Comment Putney, VT 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 dojA001271.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. Tuesday, December 18, 2001 11:13 AMA Protect Traditional Marriage Mr. Kenneth Zwick Office of Management Programs Department of Justice Washington, DC Dear Mr. Zwick: I want to express my opposition to any effort by the federal government to provide 9-11 victim compensation funds to "domestic partners" of unmarried survivors of the terrorist attack upon our nation. Funds disbursed through the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 should only go to the surviving family members of those who died on 9-11. Funds must go to the widows, widowers, orphans, and other blood-related or adopted members of the family--not to unmarried sexual partners of those who died. To provide funds to "domestic partners" is to undermine the traditional definition of marriage and family to include any number of sexual liaisons between same-sex or opposite-sex unmarried couples. Many homosexuals and swinging heterosexuals, for example, engage in sex with multiple partners. Do we provide funds to each of the sexual partners? Where do we draw the line on how many "domestic partners" a person may have? Homosexual activists are exploiting the 9-11 tragedy by asking the federal government to redefine what constitutes a legitimate "family" under the law. In fact, homosexual activist , writing in Out magazine has openly called for the subversion of the concept of marriage between a man and a woman. He has urged homosexuals to fight for the legalization of homosexual marriages and once legalized to "redefine the institution of marriage completely . . . . to debunk a myth and radically alter an archaic institution. . . . The most subversive action lesbians and gays can under take--and one that would perhaps benefit all of society--is to transform the notion of 'family' entirely." If the DOJ provides funds to "domestic partners," it will be helping accomplish his goal: That of redefining marriage and altering what he calls an "archaic institution." We also oppose September 11th Funds going to the estates of the deceased instead of to their surviving family members. No one can know for certain where these funds will end up if they are deposited in the estate of a person who has died. The person may have willed his estate to a terrorist, racial hate group, or even to an organization like the North American Man-Boy Love Association. No one will know unless each person's will is examined by a DOJ lawyer. The money should go to the surviving family members of the deceased, not to the estate or to the surviving "domestic partner." Individual Comment Ulysses, KS 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 dojA002174.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. Wednesday, March 13, 2002 1:51 PM Exclusion of Gays from Benefits Dear Mr. Feinberg: I am disgusted that you have effectively excluded the survivors of gay and lesbian Americans who died on 9/11 from receiving benefits due them from the 9/11 Compensation Fund. It is completely unacceptable for you to defer to state law on this issue. This is not a state issue. It is a federal issue. You are fully aware that only two states have laws that recognize gay partnerships. Your deferral to state law is clearly nothing more than a thin fabrication to avoid responsibility for your morally sadistic decision to dishonor the survivors of gay men and women. Your decision brings to mind too clearly the decision of some of the commanders of the allied troops which liberated the concentration camps after the Nazi collapse. They ordered that gay concentration camp victims be held in the camps - among the smoldering and rotting dead - because under German law their homosexuality made them common criminals. That decision was fairly quickly reversed, and I hope you will soon reverse yours. Yours Sincerely Individual Comment San Diego CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-13 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 dojR000616.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. 2002-03-13 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. Friday, December 28, 2001 7:47 PM Flight 93 victim My wife, &nbsp&nbsp&nbsp&nbsp was on flight 93 that crashed in Shanksville. 1) She was 2 months pregnant with our first child. I cannot find any language covering the loss of my unborn first baby. Or does the $250,000 per decedent apply here? 2) I am also confused by your calculation tables, are we to use the W-2 statements from 2000, 1999 and 1998, or use what she would have earned in 2001instead of 1998? 3) Is there no consideration for flight 93 victims that experienced pre-death pain and suffering, since they knew some 30 minutes before the crash of their pending doom? Thank you, Individual Comment San Rafael, CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-28 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 dojN001142.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. 2001-12-28 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. Thursday, December 20, 2001 3:02 AM all people must be recognized December 20, 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 Greensboro, NC September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-20 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 dojA004105.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. 2001-12-20 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 8:37 AM Crisis Relief Benefits 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 Guilderland, NY 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 dojA002760.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 4:20 PM Take action. Recognize human beings as human beings. 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 Binghamton, NY 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 dojA003521.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. Monday, March 18, 2002 7:48 PM Gay partners of lost loved ones I have no relation to the losses on 9/11, but strongly believe that it is not right that gay and lesbian partners are not being treated equally to all other surviving families of those lost on 9/11. My life partner and I have been together for more than 7 years, and I just gave birth to our twins. We live and love like any other couple in most respects, and should be treated as such, not according to ridiculous local and state laws. Thank you Individual Comment Rochester, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-18 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 dojR002148.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. 2002-03-18 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. Saturday, March 16, 2002 3:56 PM (no subject) Hi, My name is &nbsp . My office was at &nbsp in NYC. People in my building were lost in the WTC accident. I have been hearing rumors that partners of gays and lesbians won't be entitled to the same benefits as partners of heterosexual victims. I hope this isn't true. This event has shown me and countless other Americans that we are one Nation. Every American needs to believe that their government is there for them, as I am here for my government and Nation. The last six months have been very difficult. I believe that my going about my daily routine without change..is what President Bush wants me to do. This is just as brave as going off to War. I hope this is just a rumor. Thanks for your time. 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 dojR001067.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 21, 2001 5:50 PM Regulations implementing the September 11th Victim Compensation A ct Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Dear Mr. Zwick Thank you for requesting comments on the proper content of regulations that will implement the provisions of the statute creating the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (http://www.house.gov/mthompson/hr2926text.htm). The swift passage of this statute regrettably resulted, as you no doubt are aware, in provisions which pose very serious questions and problems, which should be clarified and redressed to the extent possible by the implementing regulations or if need be by amendments to the statute. (1) Is the new federal action provided in section 408(b) exclusive of any possible state tort action, or only of any other possible federal action? Section 408(b)(1) states "this cause of action shall be the exclusive remedy for damages arising out of the hijacking and subsequent crashes of such flights." Read literally as globally applicable, this would exclude any possible state tort action as well as any other federal cause of action. But the preceding phrase "Notwithstanding section 40120(c)of title 49, United States Code," is a reference only to remedies under the federal air commerce and safety statutes. So an argument can plausibly be made (if not clearly contradicted by legislative history?) that the exclusivity language should be read as being limited to the context of section 408(b), that is, as creating an "exclusive (federal) remedy," so that the newly created federal action is not exclusive of possible state court actions, but only of other possible federal actions. Given other major problems noted below, if at all possible it should not be read as being exclusive of possible state court actions, or else many valid claimants under state tort law will be denied any chance of recovery without any alternative recovery under the compensation fund, which would seem to be a clear violation of due process. (2) The narrower exclusivity interpretation discussed in (1) above also seems suggested by the limitation on civil actions enacted in section 405(c)(3)(B), which states that a claimant who submits a claim under the federal compensation scheme "waives the right to file a civil action (or be a party to an action) in any Federal or State court . . . ." There would be no need for such a broadly stated waiver if the the newly created federal action were the exclusively available court action, especially since a single court, the federal District Court for the Southern District of New York, is given original and exclusive jurisdiction over all claims under the newly created federal action. (3) The limitation provision itself literally creates a very serious potential due process problem. Read literally, it makes the filing of any claim an automatic waiver of the right to institute or join a court action (other than for collateral source payments) in any federal or state court. Yet, when an individual files, he or she does not yet know whether he or she will be determined to be an "eligible individual," much less how much he or she might be expected to receive from the compensation fund. Those who are found (after having filed a claim) not to be "eligible individuals" thus will be denied any possibility of compensation, through the fund or through court actions, which would seem to be a clear denial of due process. To avoid this draconian and presumably unintended result, all initial filings should be deemed conditional filings, conditional upon a determination that the claimant is an "eligible individual," or there should be a pre-screening process prior to formal filing in which individual eligibility can be confirmed (or denied). (4) Read literally (again), under section 405, claims under the compensation fund may only be filed and paid for harm suffered by the physically injured or deceased individual, rather than in addition for (economic and noneconomic) losses suffered by that individual's survivors (spouses or other significant others, relatives, dependents, etc.) The claim by the personal representative of a decedent seems to be solely a "Survival"-statute-type action "filed . . . on behalf of the decedent," which preserves for the decedent's estate any claim the decedent herself would have had for her own economic and noneconomic losses. Although the purpose section, section 403, states that the statute's purpose is to "provide compensation to any individual (or relatives of a deceased individual) who was physically injured or killed," the reference to "relatives" is limited to relatives of deceased (rather than also injured) individuals, and thus seems meant merely to recognize the survival of the decedent's own claim for harm suffered by the decedent as a claim that can be brought by his "personal representative," which presumably will inure to the benefit of the decedent's surviving relatives. But, if the compensation fund is so limited, and thus provides no means of compensation for (economic and noneconomic) losses suffered by relatives themselves as a result of the injury or death of the "eligible individual," it would be a clear denial of due process to shut the courthouse doors to the relatives, who have Wrongful Death actions for their own losses, independent of the losses suffered by the "eligible individual," under state laws. Thus, it definitely SHOULD NOT be a requirement, for a filing of a compensation fund claim by any "personal representative," that the personal representative first obtain from every relative a waiver of the right to bring a court action for their own injuries. Moreover, there is no warrant in the statute for any such requirement. (Note that relatives of injured "eligible individuals" clearly do not have to agree to such a waiver before the "eligible individual" can file a claim. Why should relatives of deceased "eligible individuals" be worse off?) There is a need to have a resolution of who, among possible competing individuals, should be deemed the "personal representative," but that is a distinct thorny issue which should not be merged and confused with the waiver-of-civil-claims issue, as it seems to be in the request for comments. (5) The substantive law to be applied in the newly created federal action is clear under section 408(b)(2): it is the law "of the State in which the crash occurred." But it is not clear with respect to the claims under the compensation fund. Section 402(5) defines "economic loss" to mean "any pecuniary loss resulting from harm . . . to the extent recovery for such loss is allowed under applicable State law," and thus seems to envisage (unspecified) state law being applied. However, the reference to "applicable State law" does not appear in the very broad definition of "noneconomic losses" in section 402(7). It would be desirable, if possible, to have a uniform definition of economic and noneconomic losses which would not vary in each case depending on the myriad factors that enter into state choice-of-law rules. (6) I don't see any statutory authorization or warrant for limiting "physical harm," as required for filing a claim under the compensation fund, to "serious" physical injury. The only rationale offered for possibly doing so in the request for comments is the very tight statutory time period (120 days) in which filed claims are required to be processed. But that unrealistically short statutory time period does not justify or authorize a limitation on claims not specified by the statute itself, especially given the other limitations on those claims, noted above. (If such a limitation were adopted, those who did not suffer "serious" physical injury would have to, and presumably would be able to, file a court action in either state or federal court--all in the federal District Court for the Southern District of New York if the newly created federal action is deemed to be the exclusively available tort action). (7) Similarly, despite the very tight time frame for processing claims, I don't see any statutory authorization or warrant for using a fixed schedule of damages, rather than individual claim-by-claim determinations, in assessing and awarding compensation for economic and noneconomic losses as required by the statute. Section 405(b)(1)(B)(ii) of the statute explicitly states that the Special Master shall determine "the amount of compensation to which the claimant is entitled based on the harm to the claimant, the facts of the claim, and THE INDIVIDUAL CIRCUMSTANCES of the claimant." Moreover, the definitions of "economic losses" and "noneconomic losses" in section 402 are extremely broad, encompassing "any pecuniary loss" and all "nonpecuniary losses of any kind or nature," which can accurately be assessed only through individual consideration. In apparent recognition of the need for individual consideration to assess inidividual harm and resulting individual losses, section 405(b)(4)(B) gives the claimant "the right to present evidence, including the presentation of witnesses and documents," during the Special Master's review of the filed claim. While uniform criteria, factors, guidelines, etc. would be desirable, a fixed schedule of damages would be contrary to the letter and spirit of the statute. (8) The requirement, in section 405(b)(6), that the amount of compensation under the compensation plan be reduced "by the amount of the collateral source compensation the claimant has received or is entitled to receive," is both a can of worms and a potential source of great unfairness unless it is properly narrowly interpreted. The request for comments asked if it would be possible to exclude charitable contributions from the definition of collateral sources. But the problems are much broader than that: (a) There will be serious fairness and due process problem if collateral source payments are deducted even if the collateral source has a subrogation right which could be exercised to obtain reimbursement from the compensation provided by the compensation fund, thus resulting in a double deduction. The regulations should specify that funds obtained from the compensation fund are not subject to subrogation rights. (But would this raise a constitutional "impairment of contract" claim by the collateral source, especially since the compensation claim constitutes a waiver of any court claim?). Moreover, the "entitled to receive" language should be interpreted quite narrowly to encompass only those collateral source payments which clearly will be forthcoming. (b) As under the usual practice in court, collateral source deductions should be made only for collateral source payments that cover specific items of economic and noneconomic loss that are also compensable under the compensation fund. (c) Under the literal language of section 405(b)(6), but also consonant with fair compensation principles, only collateral source compensation that the CLAIMANT HIMSELF has received for compensation for HIS OWN economic and noneconomic losses due to his injury or death can be deducted from the compensation under the compensation fund. Compensation or funds received by spouses, children, etc., rather than by the "eligible" injured individual (or the "personal representative" of the "eligible" deceased individual for losses suffered by the "eligible individual"), are not subject to deduction under the literal language of section 405(b)(6), nor should they be given the broad remedial purposes of the statute (and the liberal compensatory interpretation usually given by courts to alternative compensation schemes). Indeed, deducting compensation or funds received by spouses and children of the "eligible individual" to remedy their own distinct economic and noneconomic losses suffered as a result of the injury or death of the "eligible individual," when (apparently) those individuals are not allowed to make claims against the compensation fund for their own distinct economic and noneconomic losses (see item 4 above), would constitute a grossly unfair denial of due process and an unconstitutional taking of private property. Individual Comment Chicago, IL 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 dojW000487.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. Tuesday, December 18, 2001 2:17 AM Fair treatment for all surviving families... 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. Most sincerely yours, Individual Comment Davis, CA 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 dojA002155.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. Friday, March 15, 2002 3:21 PM homophobia To whom it may concern: I'm appalled to hear that the government is once again ignoring the rights of its gay and lesbian citizens. Please take a moment and reconsider your proposed unequal treatment of gay and lesbian people who lost loved ones on Sept. 11. Using state laws to support your decision to discriminate against gays and lesbians reveals an underlying cowardice and hypocrisy. Please reconsider! Individual Comment Seattle, WA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-15 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 dojR000860.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. 2002-03-15 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. Monday, February 25, 2002 12:49 PM comment To whom it may concern: I want to make sure that there are in the final rules, povisions for distributing funds to other family members. For example, under my husband's will, all of his assets go to me. Yet if I were to enter the fund, I might like to disperse some of the award money to my husband's parents. They are after all victims too since they lost their son. If I were to do so would I reduce the lifetime amount of gifts given free from federal estate tax? I believe that the limit is currently set at one million dollars. Individual Comment Stamford, CT September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-02-25 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 dojP000558.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. 2002-02-25 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, March 14, 2002 9:00 AM Attachment 1: Is it true?! That the families of survivors, who were in the United States ILLEGALLY are expected to be compensated by the September 11 victims fund, but gay partners - American Citizens - undoubtedly tax paying American Citizens - are expected to NOT be compensated for their horrible loss!! PLEASE tell me this is a piece of innactuarate information I have received! Because if it is true, it is an example of not only great prejudice, but pettyness that I feel ashamed as an American to be in any way a part of! Please tell me this is not true! And if it is - I EMPLORE you, NO I DEMAND will every breath that this rule, this atrocious error, be changed immediately! I thank you in advance for your prompt response to my letter. Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-14 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 dojR000726.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. 2002-03-14