724 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. Congress of the United States House of Representative Washington, DC 20515-3004 January 8, 2002 Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs, Civil Division U.. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20530 Dear Mr. Zwick: I am grateful for the opportunity to comment regarding the Interim final rule for the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001, particularly, the Eligibility rule as it relates to "physical harm" sustained and verified within 24 hours of an injury. In fairness to the victims and families of the September 11th terrorist attack this rule must be changed. Mr. of Jackson, New Jersey worked in 2 World Trade Center with his brother and sister in law. All three were employed . Mr. , in fleeing the building sustained physical injury to his back and neck but cannot file under the Victim's Compensation Fund. The present interim rule relative to "eligibility" excludes Mr. from participation as treatment did not occur within 24 hours of the injury. What the rule fails to consider is the unique circumstance of each victim. In this instance, the tragic death of Mr. 's, brother and sister in law and the preoccupation of the family in locating missing family members. Consequently, Mr. was treated for his injury on September 13th and not within arbitrary time limit imposed by the rule. I am confident, that the circumstances as outlined in Mr. 's, statement will strengthen for change in the interim eligibility regulation. I would appreciate an expeditious review and I look forward to hearing from you within a reasonable time frame. If you have any questions or if I may assist in some particular way, do not hesitate to contact me in either Washington, DC or at my Whiting District Office. Your attention to this sensitive issue is greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Christopher H. Smith Member of Congress Honorable Chris Smith 100 Lacey Road, Suite 38A Whiting Shopping Center Whiting, New Jersey 08759 12/26/01 Dear Congressman Smith: I am writing to you regarding the interim final rules of September 11 Victim Compensation Fund. Specifically, I would like your help in getting one of the rules changed as it relates to "Physical Harm." I worked in 2 World Trade Center along with my brother and sister in law. We worked for . On September 11, I severely hurt my back (2 herniated disks) and my neck running from tower 2 as the plane hit the building. Needless to say I did not get home until late evening, only to learn that my brother and sister in law were missing. My next day was spent working the telephones; calling various city agencies looking for and . Sadly, they were both killed. For this reason, I did not see my physician until September 13th. According to the interim rules of the fund, I would not qualify to use the fund because I did not see a Doctor within 24 hours of my injury. I feel that this criteria is too restrictive and unjust. I have never suffered any prior back or neck injuries and have been out of work on Workman's Compensation since September 11. I need your assistance in lobbying the funds Special Master, Mr. Feinburg, into changing the rule about seeing a physician within 24 hours of sustaining your injury. I feel that my situation speaks for itself and Mr. Feinburg should change the rule accordingly. I'm sure there are many other people in similar situations. I appreciate your help and hope we will be successful. Sincerely, Jackson, New Jersey 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 dojN002611.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 12:18 PM Relief Fund 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 Monte Rio, 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 dojA003190.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 Oakland, CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-13 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA004800.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. Thursday, December 13, 2001 11:25 AM implementation of 9/11 fund Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs, Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Dear Mr. Zwick: No doubt, you are receiving quite a few of these letters. Even though many of them have "cut and paste" content, I hope you'll treat them as they are intended--a desire to express our concern about this issue and to have our opinions heard and considered thoughtfully. I am writing in response to the Department's request for public comments regarding the forthcoming regulations for implementing and administering the "September 11 Victim Compensation Fund." I strongly urge the Department to draft regulations that ensure compensation is available to all victims of the attack, including the committed partners and the non-biological children of gay and lesbian victims. It is unquestionable that the devastating grief and economic losses suffered by the families of gay and lesbian victims are no less than that of other families. Just as the terrorists drew no lines in choosing their victims, our country must draw no lines in compensating those who suffered the most personal of losses from these horrific attacks. Many Americans lost their lives on September 11, each of whom left behind loved ones. I urge the Department to honor these bonds by treating the families of gay and lesbian victims as you would any other. Sincerely, Individual Comment Columbus, OH 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 dojA001543.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. Congress of the United States Washington, DC 20515 January 11, 2002 Kenneth L. Zwick Director, Office of Management Programs Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Main Building, Room 3140 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20530 Dear Mr. Zwick: We write to express concerns with the Interim Final Rule(the Rule) published on December 21, 2001. Although the Rule makes a good attempt at setting forth regulations that would implement the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund which was included in the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act(P.L. 107-42), the Rule contains procedures that are discriminatory to women and should therefore be revised before becoming final on January 22, 2002. Firstly, the use of outdated data to calculate compensation will negatively impact the families of women who perished or were severely injured on September 11th. The National Association of Forensic Economics (NAFE), an organization of economists and other professionals who measure damages and/or proof of liability in litigation, suggested recently that "[t]he worklife tables used [in the Interim Final Rule] in projections are out of date, and especially inappropriate in the case of loss earnings for women." "Worklife estimates" are an estimate of the number of years equal to the average expected work life of a person. We understand that these statistics will be used, in part, to determine amounts of compensation for the families therefore, reliable and timely data will be essential for accurate calculations. Yet, the Special Master proposes to use the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS), "Worklife Estimates" which are outdated charts. These estimates were made in 1979 and will show women working on average five years less than men, a gap that has narrowed over time. The Bureau of Labor Statistics' Worklife estimates are, according to the experts, widely considered as "invalid" and out of date." We call on the Special Master to use more widely-accepted, gender-neutral actuarial practices in his calculations. Secondly, in the Rule the Special Master does not take into account household services performed by the working person for the family, such as child care and household upkeep, when determining compensation. For women, replacement of lost services can be significant. The National Association of Forensic Economics' Dr. John Ward, has said that on average, women contribute 25 hours to housework compared to 10 hours for men. For the victim's family, this could mean up to $300,000 in a lifetime. According to press accounts, approximately 25, percent of those killed in the September 11th attacks were women. We strongly urge the Special Master to abandon the use of outdated worklife tables that underestimate the time women spend in the workforce. In addition, the Special Master should compensate victim's families for lost household services. Without these changes, families of women who perished or were injured on September 11th will likely be under-compensated. We realize that the Department is receiving commentary(including comments from some of us who have signed this letter) regarding numerous other aspects of the Rule. This letter is not comprehensive, but is intended to highlight these particular problems. We trust that you will give our comments every consideration when finalizing the regulations to implement the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. Sincerely, CAROLYN B. MALONEY PETER KING Member of Congress Member of Congress EDOLPHUS TOWNS CAROLYN MCCARTHY Member of Congress Member of Congress STEVE J. ISRAEL FELIX J. GRUCCI, JR. Member of Congress Member of Congress NYDIA VELZQUEZ BENJAMIN A. GILMAN Member of Congress Member of Congress JERROLD NADLER MAURICE HINCHEY Member of Congress Member of Congress JOSE E. SERRANO GREGORY W. MEEKS Member of Congress Member of Congress 1. 12-21-01 fr 66273-66291 2. P.23," An introduction and Critique by John O. Ward," Chair and Professor of Economics, University of Missouri-Kansas City, delivered to the National Association of Forensic Economics, January 4, 2002 3. p.2, Presumed Loss Calculations Tables Before any Collateral Offsets, listed on the U.S. Department of Justice's September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 website 4. "Less for Women?; Work life Statistics May Limit Sept. 11 Fund Payouts to Victims," Newsday, January 4, 2002 5. p. 19 "An Introduction and Critique by John O. Ward," Chair and Professor of Economics, University of Missouri-Kansas City, delivered to the National Association of Forensic Economics, January 4, 2002 6. "Less for Women?; Work Life Statistics May Limit Sept. 11 Fund Payouts to Victims," Newsday, January 4, 2002 September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-11 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojN002430.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. 2002-01-11 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Sunday, November 18, 2001 2:43 PM RE: Disaster on September 11, 2001 Submitted by: November 16, 2001 Dear Mr. Zwik: As a relative of one of the victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks, I trust that the regulations for the Victims Compensation Fund ("the Fund") can be fashioned in such a manner to bring equity and closure this most awful chapter in American history. Towards that end, the Fund must be structured to encourage victims' families to surrender their rights to sue because they believe they will be treated fairly and promptly. To send such a compelling message I respectfully submit that the regulations must contain following elements: 1. Do not reduce the award from any collateral source funds collected, including insurance, pension benefits, death benefits, and governmental payments (which we understand are being considered as offsets). Such offsets should be disallowed for, among other reasons, the same reason the IRS exempts life insurance proceeds from taxation (i.e., to encourage citizens to plan for their heirs). Such offsets would penalize those victims who sacrificed and saved for their families' futures and unjustly transfer these assets, thereby representing a lifetime of work, to insurance companies and other corporate entities that may share the blame for the consequences that resulted from the tragic events of 9/11. In a nutshell, these assets have nothing to do with the damages that flowed from 9/11, and therefore there should be no offset to damages based on the net worth of the victims' families. It would also result in awarding more in damages to those who did not sacrifice and save for their families' futures, which would be an inequitable result. 2. Provide the victims' families with the right to appeal the award, as doing so would undoubtedly increase participation in the Fund. 3. Should the Department of Justice decline to offer victims' families the right to appeal, then at a minimum they should have input regarding the selection of the mediator who would decide the award. The government should provide a list of potential mediators with their background (e.g., educational, work experience, prior award history, etc.), which would allow victims' families to make an informed choice. 4. There should be set parameters for calculating damages (i.e., mathematical formula factoring lost future earnings, pension benefits, number of children, and other pecuniary benefits that would have been earned taking into consideration life expectancy tables), that would provide a floor for calculating damages and provide assurance to victims' families as to what they could expect to receive, at a minimum, if they elected to opt into the Fund. I believe this has been referred to in the press as the development of a "grid." In short, the victims' families should be able to calculate, with some certainty, the minimum amount of money they could expect to be awarded prior to participating in the hearing. That should serve as a powerful inducement to opt into the Fund. 5. Determine pain and suffering at the hearing. 6. If the mediator deviates for the guidelines the victims' families should be able to appeal the decision. 7. The regulations should include a scheme that would afford the victims' families one that is similar to the one they would enjoy in a wrongful death case. The amount awarded as damages should include all funeral, burial, and estate administration expenses incurred. Importantly, the amount should compensate the victims' family for contributions they would have received between the time of his death and the end of this life expectancy, such as future lost wages. His gross earnings, including all fringe benefits between the date of his death and his life expectancy, must be factored in. Additionally, all monies the victim would have spent for or given to his family for such items as shelter, food, clothing, medical car, education, entertainment, gifts and recreation, taking into account his salary and age, must also be considered. The amount awarded should also consider the comfort and friendship that he would have given to his family had he lived and such other elements as work around the home and provision of society and comfort. 8. Since the amount awarded would be intended to restore the victim's family's loss, it should not be considered as "income." Therefore, it should not be taxable by the federal or state taxing authorities. In closing, I understand that the DOJ is suggesting that the victims' families surrender their right to sue without advising them what they can anticipate by way of award and without the ability to appeal such award. This is, to be kind, unacceptable. The above suggestions would encourage attorneys and families alike to opt into the Fund, thereby forgoing their right to sue. This would bring closure to an American Tragedy and reassure victims' families that our government has their best interests at heart. We only want to place them in the financial position they would have been in had their loved ones not been taken away in the worst terrorist attacks in American history?which may have been avoided. But that is another story. Thank you. Respectfully, Individual Comment Bronxville, NY September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-18 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 dojW000376.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. 2001-11-18 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. Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs U.S. Department of Justice January 30, 2002 Dear, Mr. Zwick We, the undersigned, are writing to express our desire that the list of September 11 relatives who are eligible for benefit and compensation includes people who lost their life partners as well as de facto parents or children, without any consideration of sexual orientation or marital status. New York state has already granted benefits to people, "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." Please follow their positive example. We wish to remind Justice Department officials that real justice will only be served if all families, and all types of families, are treated with dignity and equality. Sincerely, Group Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-30 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 dojP000323.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. 2002-01-30 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 19, 2002 5:29 PM Help same sex partners of terrorist victims Dear Mr. Zwick: The very humane Fund for relatives of victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks must include all relatives of all the victims. This importantly should include the partners and children of same sex unions. They suffer just as grievously for their deceased loved ones as do other survivors, and their need for assistance is just as great. Please do not give in to the importuning of callous homophobic groups and individuals who would have the Department of Justice limit compensation to survivors of heterosexual unions. They are interested in a political victory, not humane assistance. This Fund is intended for humane purposes; it is not a political statement, Mr. Zwick. Sincerely, Individual Comment Bordentown, NJ September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-19 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 dojN002069.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. 2002-01-19 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 2:47 AM please read 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 Morton, 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 dojA002487.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 New York, 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 dojA003249.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-13 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Tuesday, January 15, 2002 8:20 PM Help same sex partners of terrorist victims Dear Mr. Zwick: The very humane Fund for relatives of victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks must include all relatives of all the victims. This importantly should include the partners and children of same sex unions. They suffer just as grievously for their deceased loved ones as do other survivors, and their need for assistance is just as great. Please do not give in to the importuning of callous homophobic groups and individuals who would have the Department of Justice limit compensation to survivors of heterosexual unions. They are interested in a political victory, not humane assistance. This Fund is intended for humane purposes; it is not a political statement, Mr. Zwick. Sincerely, Individual Comment Plainfield, VT September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-15 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 dojN001853.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. 2002-01-15 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, December 19, 2001 4:22 AM Fairness is needed December 19, 2001 Dear Mr. Kenneth Zwick, As a member of Amnesty International, a worldwide human rights movement committed to ensuring respect for the basic human rights of people without discrimination, I am 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, such as that against sexual minorities. 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 Seattle, WA 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 dojA002501.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. Saturday, February 09, 2002 12:51 PM VictimComp To Whom It May Concern, I am writing today because I am very unhappy about this September 11th fund coming out of my pocket against my will! I do not wish to pay for someone else's upkeep unless I make the decision to do so. I find it sad that instead of taking on the charitable organizations and demanding they pay out what we great Americans dug deep and sent in (as I understand, funds are still coming in to these organizations), the government has taken it upon themselves to decide for us all that we also have to be taxed to keep these people in a lifestyle which they have become accustomed to. Lots of these people were making way more money than my husband and I make in a year, and were smart investors making sure their families were taken care of in the event that something should happen to them. If something should happen to my husband, I would have to change my lifestyle greatly to take care of my family. I wouldn't expect someone to do it for me and I wouldn't ask, I would just do. Seems to me the charitable organizations got off pretty easy at our expense and as nice as we were in giving funds to help out like we always do in times of hardship, we are told "please give more." Please don't get me wrong, I cried with everyone on September 11th, I wouldn't wish anything bad on ANYONE, but to say that this somehow is more important than anything else that has happened in the past (WTC'93, U.S.S. Cole, O.K. City, Lockerbie) is ludicrous! And to also say that the people in the lower paying job bracket that worked in the WTC building should somehow get less than the ones who were in the higher paying bracket looks to me that you sure have put a price on someone's life. The lower paid employees are the bread and butter for the higher paid. They did the cleaning, cooking and any other job they had to do to make the others life just a little easier yet they are looked over as has been done forever where the middle class is concerned. And of course, lest we forget the "domestic partners" clause! Utter rubbish!! Then there's the people who were found to be in the country illegally, yet they still get something out of it?? What's wrong with this picture? Operative word in that last sentence was "illegally" meaning they had no business working in this country, they had no papers to be here, so NO money! I say let's scrap this thing, demand the charitable organizations get off their behinds and start doing with our money what we expected them to do, what they said they would do, get the money in the hands of the people who lost loved ones in this horrible disaster and move on with all our lives!! And to said charitable organizations, they can remember these days now for future reference if God forbid something like this should happen again and they're sitting in their offices wondering why the American public hasn't donated anything. We'll be taking it to the victims themselves to assure it goes to the hands that need them. And to the politicians who voted this mess in, when you're sitting in your homes finding you're out of a job come election day in a few months remember this and that we the American people are the government, you work for us, not the other way around! Thank you.Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-02-09 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 dojP000476.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. 2002-02-09 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. Tuesday, December 18, 2001 10:49 PM Support Equal Access to Crisis Relief Benefits for Surviving Gay and Lesbian Partners! December 18, 2001 Dear Mr. Kenneth Zwick, I write as a member of Amnesty International, a worldwide human rights movement committed to ensuring respect for the basic human rights of people without discrimination, in support of equal access to benefits under the September 11 Victims Relief Fund for all victims, regardless of sexual orientation or marital status. As you know, the United States has committed to uphold international human rights standards, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which prohibit arbitrary discrimination. As you consider rules for administering the relief fund, I ask that you apply basic international human rights standards, and the general principle of equality, by including among relatives eligible for compensation those who lost their life partners, as well as de facto parents or children, without regard to sexual orientation or marital status. The State of New York has already adopted such a policy, granting compensation benefits "on a showing of mutual interdependence with the victim, in recognition that anyone who shared with the victim living expenses, day to day activities and the emotional bonds of family deserves help in this time of need." Many lesbian and gay people were killed in the September 11th attacks. Since then, lesbian and gay surviving partners of those killed have had mixed results in obtaining equal treatment at the local level in the distribution of relief funds by private and state agencies. An inclusive policy on the part of the federal government would help establish an important principle for other such funds. In compensating victims, real justice will be served only when all families - and all types of families - impacted by the human rights tragedy of September 11 are treated with dignity and equality. Thank you for considering my concerns. I look forward to hearing from you about your efforts to ensure that all surviving victims of the September 11 attacks have equal access to the relief fund. Sincerely, Individual Comment Chicago, IL 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 dojA002421.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. Thursday, March 14, 2002 1:28 PM Gays and Lesbians deserve compensation too! I received an article today which I found very disturbing. I'm sure you've heard about it, and I hope you're getting enough response to rethink the decision. I am a straight, white American citizen. I do not feel like there are prejudices against me for the most part, but I deeply sympathize with those who do have to deal with prejudice. The fact that our government, or those who represent our government are saying that it's okay for us to give money to illegal aliens, who one, have not paid taxes and contributed to our country, and two, are here against our laws, seems unfathomable to me. Let's give these undeserving immigrants compensation for the loss of loved ones, who were, in some cases, also illegal aliens themselves, but forget about the good hearted, taxpaying, law abiding citizens who's partners died trying to save our country because of their sexual orientation. That's appauling! That is a complete contradiction of what America is about. This is the melting pot. This is a country where people are supposed to be able to come to without getting judged, yet we have a man, Kenneth Feinberg, who stands up on National television, and advertizes the opposite. What is wrong with this picture? And to use the state law as a cop out! Just because some states don't recognize same sex marriages, does that mean that the love two people shared is worth less? If anything, their love was stronger because they had prejudices to overcome together. Who is Mr. Feinberg to make the call of who deserves compensation based on such factors? This world is not made up of black and white. There is a huge amount of grey area that falls between the cracks. Don't allow these people, who are human beings to fall between the cracks. There is always individual circumstances and situations to be considered, and labeling these people appears to be a way for you to control your budget. Whether it's true or not, it looks to the American public like your organization doesn't have enough money to go around, so they have chosen this group of people to be left out in order to maintain your mission. There are better ways to achieve that. Why not come up with a standard rule? If a victim can provide proof that they were living with their partner for over a year, and that they were living together at the time of the attacks, then they qualify, period. Please take this letter into consideration. Gays and lesbians deserve compensation too. These people have lost the most important person in their lives. Don't deprive them of the benefits that you are allowing others. If being gay is wrong, then let God be the one to judge them. Don't do it here on earth! Give these people the compassion they deserve. Sincerely, Individual Comment Denver, CO 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 dojR000766.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 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 10:39 AM 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 Miamisburg, OH 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 dojA002173.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. Saturday, March 16, 2002 5:16 PM 9/11 Fund Exclusion of Gays I am a college student, and being young I am assumed to be cynical and have little tolerance or respect for our government. But the latest actions of our government bring my respect for our government to a new low. The hypocrisy of our leaders is absolutely appalling. I have lost my faith. How can our country, our government, our leaders, and ourselves truly believe in a free world if we fail to let that freedom encompass all people? We can no longer seek to find division amongst ourselves. The policies of division are what have dictated the past and can no longer be supported. Our countries policies of division have separated landowners from non-landowners, men from women, whites from Blacks (and every other race), Christians from Jews and Muslims, and straight people from gays and lesbians. When will we learn? I would have thought that we would have learned September 11th. I was under the impression that since September 11th, we have all come together, to be united as a country. But in fact the opposite is true. From our government's policies targeting Arab-Americans and other immigrants to the 9/11 fund's exclusion of gays, our country, our government, our leaders, and ourselves (if we choose to do nothing about it) have once again resorted to a policy of divisiveness. It is time -- in fact it has been time for several years now -- to take a stand. We can no longer let our governments policies of division separate us. We are all Americans, and more importantly we are all humans. No amount of misguided laws, divisive policies, prejudice or fear can deny that fact. As a college student, as the future of this country, I ask you to end this countrys policies of division and help unite us all, gay and straight alike, under the banner of humanity. Sincerely, 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 dojR001122.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. Thursday, March 14, 2002 11:28 AM 9/11 Fund Discrimination Mr. Feingold: You are taking the easy way out. You know that gay people like died for their country and possibly saved the lives of thousands of others who may have been killed in an attack on Washington DC. You said on MEET THE PRESS that you didn't want to be involved in law suits from every state. You should be proud to be sued by every state in the union if it means treating hero gays and lesbians like normal people. Isn't that worth fighting for? put his life on the line - - won't you at least put something of yourself on the line? Don't be a coward. Do what's right and take a chance. Maybe it's time for America to realize the truth. Be a hero. Sincerely, Individual Comment Oceanside, NY 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 dojR000746.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 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 7:09 PM 9/11 Fund Discriminating Against Gays Dear Mr. Feinberg, SHAME ON YOU! What kind of motivations do you have to allow ILLEGAL ALIENS and their spouses to collect funds from your organization BUT NOT AMERICAN BORN GAYS AND LESBIANS. EVERYONE THAT WAS AFFECTED should be allowed to receive funds, regardless of race, origin, SEXUAL PREFERENCE, OR ANY OTHER REASON. With your logic in place, THERE IS NO JUSTICE, in any DEPARTMENT that you're a part of. I AM A STRAIGHT but educated AMERICAN CITIZEN that VOTES like other responsible people in this country, INCLUDING GAYS AND LESBIANS and your shallow prejudice WILL NOT BE TOLERATED without recourse. Most sincerely and totally disgusted, Individual Comment Culver City, 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 dojR002116.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. Thursday, December 20, 2001 2:00 PM Equality in Giving 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 Charlottesville, VA 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 dojA004518.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