885 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. Tuesday, March 12, 2002 11:00 PM Sept 11th Victims Fund To whom it may concern: Gays, lesbians and their partners should NOT be left out of the Sept 11th Victims Fund. and other gay americans that lost their lives due to the tragic events on that fateful day have just as much right to the compensation and recognition as every other american that lost their life. Individual Comment Reno NV September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-12 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR000538.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-12 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, December 05, 2001 2:58 PM Compensation for Families of Sept 11 attack Kenneth L. Zwick Director Office of Management Programs U.S. Department of Justice Dear Mr. Zwick, I am writing to express my support for including gay/lesbian/bisexual and transgender families in the "Victim Compensation Fund." As an American citizen who has lived in a family relationship with another man for nearly seventeen years, and as the father of a two-year old boy, I believe that our family is no less deserving the protection and support of our nation than any other. And should we personally experience a tragedy of the magnitude of September 11, I would hope that the nation would come to our aid as fellow Americans. My hope is that one day our nation will rise above the petty divisiveness we so often see and hear, and recognize the great wonder and diversity of the families that weave together the fabric of our society. Thank you, Individual Comment Charleston, SC September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-05 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA000837.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-05 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. November 21, 2001 Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs U.S. Department of Justice Civil Division Main Building, Room 3140 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530 Dear Mr. Zwick, Yesterday I forwarded to you on behalf of 9-11 victims the attached letter with numerous signatures. Please find attached hereto another copy of that letter with additional signatures, many of which were faxed to me as a result of the deadlines imposed. Sincerely, September 11th Victims Families Colts Neck, NJ ATTACHMENT 1 November 21, 2001 Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs Civil Division Main Building, Room 3140 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530 Dear Mr. Zwick, With heavy hearts we write this letter to you representing not only ourselves, but the hundreds of other families whose loved ones were either hurt or killed in the tragic events of September 11, 2001. On that day, our lives spiraled out of control. Writing this letter to you in response to your request for comments about the Victims Compensation Fund is one step in our efforts at regaining control over our new lives, and learning to have hope for tomorrow. The Victims Compensation Fund's intent is to make whole families of the victims. While the fund is set up as a convenient, expedient process, we are concerned and do share some reservations about its ability to make us whole. OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD Most importantly, we are concerned that we will not be given a complete and full opportunity to be heard, should we choose to do so. Each of us rightfully deserves the opportunity to be fairly heard before a hearing officer. We would like to have the occasion to present evidence through our own testimony and the testimony of expert witnesses. We would like for each of our cases to be considered on a case-by-case basis. For many of us, being given the right to be heard is a crucial and extremely valuable part of our healing process. Lack of economic means should not foreclose such an opportunity. We hope that you can understand this. Currently, most, if not all of us, are in financial distress. We do not have the economic means to hire the necessary experts for our particular cases. We do not want to be precluded from retaining the services of these expert witnesses simply because of our own financial inability to do so. Therefore, we believe that all expert fees should be paid directly out of the compensation fund by the Special Master, and that there should be no limit on garnering such fees. RIGHT TO APPEAL AND FORM OF PAYMENT One of our greatest concerns is that the current statutory schemes are removing our options. With the passage of the most recent legislation removing all public entities from fault, we are left with one viable means of recovery - the Victims Compensation Fund. Please understand, by electing the Fund we are forfeiting our right to bring a third-party lawsuit. We are forfeiting our right to find actual fault against and entity (the federal government, the Port Authority, the airlines, etc.) - that would psychologically provide us with some kind of answers as to why this horrible event was even able to occur. If we are forfeiting our right to bring a third-party lawsuit, we should be guaranteed a right to appeal in exchange. If we are going to put our fate in the hands of a hearing officer, we should at the very least have the right to appeal his or her decision. We would also like the option to receive any payments made either in one lump sum, or through a structured pay out of the decedent's beneficiary, consistent with what our personal investment advisors recommend for each of our individual family circumstances. For example, any payment made to minor children should be in trust. In addition, the parent of said minor children should determine the date of vesting. the trust should not automatically vest at the age of 18, unless the parent determines that it is in the children's own best interests to do so. ECONOMIC LOSSES Of critical importance to us, is the fair computation of economic losses. We strongly oppose any cap being placed upon this portion of recovery. Simply put, no one should be penalized because their loved one worked long, hard hours and earned a "good salary". Every case is unique and deserves individual treatment, but we would like to know beforehand how economic damages will be calculated for loss of earnings and work related benefits. This will, at least, provide us with a base from which we can begin to make a decision as to whether the fund will provide us with adequate compensation to survive. We request an approach similar to that used in personal injury actions. However, neither age nor marital status should be a discriminatory factor. retirement should be set at age 68. The decedent's income should be averaged over the past 3 working years. The decedent's age should be subtracted from 68. Those two numbers should be multiplied together, thereby gleaning a starting point for computation. From this base point, other factors such as inflation, wage-increases, merit, likely bonuses and advancement, and any other benefits should be considered. We should be given the right to present expert testimony to prove these losses. For many, the lost income streams may be contingent, variable, or unpredictable. We do not believe that our families should be penalized because of this. the hearing officers should be permitted to consider the testimony of experts concerning such things as the likelihood of advancement, the bonus scheme unique to each company and each department in each company, economic cycles, performance reviews, as well as, how the compensation of other co-workers progressed during the course of their working lives. In those cases where the compensation is extremely variable and dependant upon commissions, as a base, we believe that the hearing officer should consider the average of the best three out of five years of employment. NON-ECONOMIC LOSSES There should also be absolutely no cap on the non-economic losses awarded by the Fund. Each person's circumstances must be evaluated individually. Each case should take into account the decedent's age, the marital status, and the number and ages of the decedent's children. Moreover, the severity of pain and suffering (both mental and physical) of not only the decedent, but also the spouse, children, parents, and next of kin of the decedent should also be evaluated. Non-economic losses should be calculated similar to that in personal injury actions, But, again, neither age, marital status, nor dependency status should be a detriment. Special consideration must be given to the fact that eyewitness testimony concerning the horrific pain and suffering endured by our loved ones may be impossible to elicit. Thus, the hearing officer should consider the reports and/or testimony of expert witnesses who may describe based upon their training and experiences what the decedent went through both mentally and physically prior to his or her own death. Hearsay testimony should be permitted. Moreover, we do not believe that there should be a limitation on the types of injuries to be compensated. We are concerned that we may suffer from real and devastating emotional harm not immediately apparent after the attack; harm for which we should be compensated. In addition to personal injury, we may suffer the loss of the ability to earn an income, we may incur large medical bills, etc. All of these things should be compensated for by the Fund. We strongly oppose any attempt to place into a formula or matrix a predetermined methodology for calculating our other losses. Each family situation is different. We have the right to be treated as individuals. Compensation for non-economic losses is crucial to the survival of some families, such as the firemen and policemen's. Any family who has a considerable amount of coverage in life insurance will need some incentive to enter the Fund, since life insurance proceeds are currently scheduled to be deducted from any recovery. We strongly disagree with the proposal as outlined below. Certainly, we would expect any non-economic recovery from this Fund to be generous in light of the terrible circumstances of September 11th. COLLATERAL SOURCES Finally, we are very concerned about the possible use of collateral sources to offset any amount recovered from the Fund. Life insurance should not be deducted from Fund payments. Simply put, life insurance is not taxed by IRS for one reason-it encourages people to plan for their heirs. To deduct any life insurance from Fund payments would penalize those who were merely responsible estate planners. The decedents sacrificed and saved hard-earned money to pay for such plans. They are already victims once, do not make them victim's twice. At the very least premiums paid should be offset against the life insurance deductions. Moreover, pension funds, IRAs, and 401k plans should not be deducted from the fund's recovery amount. Again, our loved ones sacrificed to save for these plans as part of a responsible estate planning program. Essentially, they are savings accounts, and they should not be deducted from any award received from Fund. There should be no deductions from any Fund recovery for any "in kind" contributions made to our families. In addition, all potential future collateral source payments should similarly be excluded from consideration as deductions from any compensation recovery. With regard to charity, Americans across this country donated their hard-earned money as a symbol of their patriotism, and our brotherhood as a nation. To deduct this charity money from any final payment would, in our opinion, be wrong. Donations made to families like us were generously and selflessly given to us as a form of healing for both donor and recipient. Every single dollar donated and received gives each one of us a hope for tomorrow and a belief on our country as a united whole. Please do not denigrate this beautiful symbol of our nation standing together as one by turning it into a dollars and cents computation. In closing, we sincerely thank you for considering our comments. We are all struggling through extremely difficult times. Your asking for our input about the Victims Compensation Fund-something that will have an enormous and tremendous bearing on the rest of our lives-truly and honestly gives us a small bit of peace in our restless minds. We can only ask you to please keep our children and ourselves in your hearts during the weeks ahead. Sincerely, Comment by: September 11th Victims Families Colts Neck, NJ ATTACHMENT 2 East Meadow NY Marlboro, NJ Hazlet NJ WKeansburg NJ Hazlet NJ W.Keansburgs N.J. Hazlet N.J. old Bridge, NJ Manalapan NJ Morganville NJ Marlboro, N.J. English Town, NJ Englishton, NJ Hackettstown, NJ Pompton Plains, NJ Bedminster, NJ Closter, NJ Midland Dr, NJ Hawthorne, NJ Garfield NJ Ridgewood, NJ New York, NY Bklyn. NY Sharon MA Hoboken NJ Linin, N J Chatham, NJ Springfield, NJ Livingston NJ South Orange, NJ Shord Hills, NJ Union Beach, NJ Orange, NJ Chatham, NJ Rye, NJ Harrison, NY Alexandria, VA New York, NY Port Washington, NY DoeylaIton, NY NHP, NY G.H., N.Y. Levittown, NY Glen Head NY Manhasset NY Glen Oaks, NY Cark Place, NY Merreck, NY Maplewood, NJ Short Hills, NJ Dr. SH NJ South Orange, NJ Arvada, Co Summit, NJ Far Hills, NJ Freehold, NJ New Canaan, CT Madouon, NJ Florham Park, NJ Hobken, NJ Portsmouth, NH Staten Is, NY West Orange, NJ Morgonville NJ Hanover, NJ Bloomfield, NJ Robbbinsville, NJ Boca Raton, FL Pampino Beach, FL Oakland Park, FL Brooklyn, N.Y. Lake Hiawatha, NJ Short Hills, NJ Kearssy, NJ Newark, NJ Maspeth, NY Leawood, KS Mineola, NY NW, Washington, D.C. Jersey City, NJ Fanwood, NJ Stewart Manor, N.Y. Garden City, N.Y. 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 dojW000791.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. Thursday, December 20, 2001 9:40 AM FAIR Compensation for Terror Victims 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 Wantage, NJ 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 dojA004207.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. 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 diswasher in one of the restaraunts 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 taxpayers 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 famillies are especially vulerable when one partner is killed. Because the option of marriage is unavailable, these families may find themselves in a traumatic predicament of having to prove that their union is legitimate. Fortunaely, 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 Philadelphia, PA 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 dojA002392.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. Wednesday, December 19, 2001 12:35 PMZ Equal Access to Victims Relief Fund 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 San Francisco, 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 dojA003223.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 11, 2002 4:52 PM FW: Compensation rules Monday, March 11, 2002 2:44 PM Compensation rules I am just curious as to why the Fund Leaders are willing to go against US law for illegal aliens and yet cowers for Gays and Lesbians. You are willing to overlook the fact that people and businesses have violated immigration laws and yet you are afraid of lawsuits that may or may not result from helping law abiding American citizens based on who they loved and with whom they shared a home. As an American citizen and a Lesbian I am getting really tired of hearing how United the US is now. We have become a more united nation but as time passes and the wounds are not so fresh we are beginning to see that we are United as long as you fit the criteria. If you fall into a category that we don't like well that is just too bad for you. It is shameful that the 911 fund cares more illegal immigrants than for heroes like and and the many others who died alongside their fellow Americans and Foreign nationals. It is people like you who run this fund and others who claim that Gays just want special rights. Yet we maintain that we just want what is equal for all Americans. Now we just want what is fair even if your an illegal immigrant. I have a question for you. If you have an illegal immigrant who is eligible to receive funds but was involved in a same-sex relationship would you pay it? Or would your homophobia give you a reason to find a loophole to deny those benefits as well. Honor the victims and their families as a group do not try to divide us again by hatred and bigotry. Do you honestly believe that a Gay man or Lesbian woman grieves any less when their partner dies than a heterosexual couple? Do you believe that just because they live together without a commitment, which the government will not allow, then we have a right to treat them as just good friends of the victim without benefits or protections? You had a chance to show the world that America cares for all of its citizens and those here illegally. Instead you decided to desecrate the memory of those who died and say,"Well your death just isn't as traumatic as everyone else's, maybe if your weren't queer we would treat you just like a "normal" person." I realize you will probably never read this message but I felt strongly enough to write you and say I hope you never have to experience the prejudice and hatred that you are perpetuating with you inane decisions. You should be ashamed of yourselves and you should rectify your mistake. I won't hold my breath while you try to catch a clue. Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-11 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR000204.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-11 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Sunday, December 16, 2001 10:46 AM Surviors of Sept 11 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. Sincerely, Individual Comment 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 dojA002061.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. ednesday, December 19, 2001 12:37 PM equal access to 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 Hanover, NH 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 dojA003228.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Thursday, March 21, 2002 1:00 AM Exclusion of Gay Partners I want to register my dismay at the failure to recognize the partners of gay and lesbian victims on the same basis as other family members. There's ample president for their inclusion. The failure to include gay partners is unjust and blatantly discriminatory. Individual Comment September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-21 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 dojR002461.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. 2002-03-21 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. Sunday, March 17, 2002 6:05 AM gay and lesbian partners benefits It upsets me greatly to learn that the gay and lesbian partners of those who died on September 11 are not going to receive the same benefits as heterosexual spouses. Please reconsider this decision and take care of *all* who lost a loved one on that horrible day. Thank-you, Individual Comment Conrad, MT September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-17 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR001640.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-17 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. 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 Franklin, MA 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 dojA004871.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. Monday, November 19, 2001 7:01 PM Inclusion of unborn children Dear Sirs, Please include the 18 unborn children in your list of potential claimants in Schedule #5. I believe that unborn children are 100% alive and should have the right to life and to benefits. They should be "eligible victims," especially when we view them from the vantage point of the Declaration of Independence. Thank you for your consideration. My wife lost a pregnancy once, and it was like we lost a child. An unborn child plus a few months is really a real live baby. Individual Comment Stockton, NJ September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-19 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 dojW000411.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. 2001-11-19 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, March 20, 2002 12:36 AM September 11 Victim Compensation Fund I think that it is essential that partners of gay and lesbain vistims of the Sept. 11th tragedy recieve the same benefits as all other survivors. This is one chance for our cuntry to say that we care eqaully about all of our citizens. thank you Individual Comment Arcata, CA September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-03-20 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojR002288.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-03-20 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Wednesday, December 19, 2001 6:21 AM 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 Cincinnati, OH September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-19 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA002526.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 9:41 AM I have just read that fetuses and illegal aliens will be receiving benefits but that the survivors of gay victims will not be covered. Is this true? If it is, it is an outrage. How dare you decide that we are less human than anyone else and that our suffering is less important than that of others. When we should be pulling together as Americans it is especially disheartening and insulting to find that you are trying to create divisons by excluding us. I guarantee that plenty of gay Americans made contributions to these relief funds and it never entered our minds that you would withold anything from our brothers and sisters. Wake up and act right. Individual Comment 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 dojR001705.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. Sunday, December 16, 2001 9:54 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 Glenford, OH 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 dojA004915.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. December 15, 2001 Special Master Kenneth R. Feinberg September 11th Victim Compensation Fund U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20530 To Mr. Feinberg: I am writing to urge you to ensure fair treatment for all surviving families of the tragedy on September 11th, including the children and families of low-wage workers and gay and lesbian families. Under traditional rules based on lost wages, the survivors of a bond trader earning millions of dollars per year might receive thousands of times as much compensation as the survivors of a dishwasher in one of the restaurants destroyed. Justice requires looking far beyond the last paycheck to the inherent worth of all those killed, so that a high minimum compensation level is set to lessen the disparities. It would be a double blow to the survivors to first lose their loved one and then watch as most of the taxpayer money went to those who were already well off in the first place. The second major issue has to do with recognizing the legitimacy of gay and lesbian relationships and families. Gay and lesbian families are especially vulnerable when one partner is killed. Because the option of marriage is unavailable, these families may find themselves in the traumatic predicament of having to prove that their union is legitimate. Fortunately, both the Red Cross and the State of New York have already announced that they will not discriminate against gay and lesbian families. The Department of Justice should do the same. Thank you for considering my comments. I look forward to hearing how you will act on these very important issues. Sincerely, Individual Comment Fort Worth, TX September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-12-15 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA005194.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-12-15 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. January 14, 2002 Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Main Building, Room 3140 950 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, DC 20530 Re: Comments, September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Regulations Dear Mr. Zwick: I represent a number of individuals and families who were directly affected by the events of September 11, 2001. In this capacity, I have reviewed the Regulations that Special Master Kenneth Feinberg promulgated for the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. Please find below my comments on the Regulations. I. As promulgated by the Office of the Special Master on December 20, 2001, the Regulations governing the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund are, in some instances, contrary to their empowering statutes. For example, as envisioned by Congress and the President, the Fund was designed to compensate victims and their surviving families for the full extent of their "economic losses". To that end, Section 402 (5) of Public Law 107-42 defines compensable "economic losses" as "any pecuniary loss resulting from harm (including loss of earnings or other benefits related to employment, medical expense loss, replacement services loss, loss due to death, burial costs, and loss of business or employment opportunities) to the extent recovery for such loss is allowed under applicable State law." (Emphasis added.) The emphasized language is at odds with the formulaic system of matrices that the Regulations propose for calculating awards under the Fund. Indeed, the matrix system ignores income in excess of $231,000; in this way, the Regulations fail to offer relief for "any pecuniary loss," as required by statute. Moreover, the law of no state renders irrelevant income beyond $231,000 for purposes of determining monetary damages in a court of law. In the final analysis, the Regulations wrongfully ignore statutory directives to save money for the federal government-at the expense of the victims and their families. II.. Second, as they concern collateral offsets, the Regulations do not treat insurance with sufficient detail. At a minimum, the Regulations should indicate whether insurance proceeds operate as an offset if they are 1. not owned by the deceased; 2. not payable to estate of the deceased; or 3. payable to a party who is not a beneficiary of the estate. III.. Finally, the Regulations require Fund claimants to relinquish their right to sue any and all parties in a separate, fault-based action. However, Public Law 107-42, as modified by Public Law 107-71, provides that applicants to the Fund should retain their rights to sue terrorist, their co-conspirators, and terrorist states. The following statutory provisions illustrate the foregoing: From Public Law 107-71: TITLE II, LIABILITY LIMITATION, SEC.201, AIR TRANSPORTATION SAFETY AND SYSTEM STABILIZATION ACT, AMENDMENTS. (a) Recover of Collateral Source Obligations of Terrorists. Section 405(c)(3)(B)(i) of the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act...is amended by striking "obligations." and inserting "obligations, or to a civil action against any person who is a knowing participant in any conspiracy to hijack any aircraft or commit any terrorist act." From Public Law 107-42, Section 405(c)(3)(B)(i) (modified by the foregoing): (3) REQUIREMENTS. (A) SINGLE CLAIM. Not more than one claim may be submitted under this title by an individual or on behalf of a deceased individual. (B) LIMITATION ON CIVIL ACTION. (i) IN GENERAL. Upon the submission of a claim under this title, the claimant waives the right to file a civil action (or to be a party to an action) in any Federal or State court for damages sustained as a result of the terrorist-related aircraft crashes of September 11, 2001. The preceding sentences does not apply to a civil action to recover collateral source obligations. I trust that the above comments will receive that attention--and the full and fair consideration-that they deserve. Very truly yours, Individual Comment Stanford, Connecticut September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2002-01-14 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 dojN002624.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. 2002-01-14 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. 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 dojA003011.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