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 6:20 PM FW: Please read this I am a United States citizen and taxpayer who contributed to the September 11 Fund; I am also a gay man. And I am writing to state my belief that it's unconscionable for the directors of the 911 Fund even to think of withholding benefits from gay and lesbian partners of th0se killed in the attacks, for any reason whatsoever. By proposing this discriminatory, bigoted, and un-American policy, the directorship of the 911 Fund -- and by extension, the Department of Justice -- is sending the message that the lives of gay Americans are worth less than those of heterosexuals. sacrificed his own life to help bring United Flight 93 down in a field in Pennsylvania instead of on top of the US Congress; NY Fire Department spent his last hours helping the other frightened people trapped in the World Trade Center. Do their sacrifices mean less, and should we be less grateful to them, because they were gay? To discriminate against gay and lesbian Americans, for any reason, is categorically wrong; but to uphold such bigotry and small-mindedness in the wake of the events of September 11 is not just reprehensible -- it's a slap in the face to everything this country is supposed to stand for. I can't even find words to express how insulting it is, that the DOJ is willing to ignore immigration laws to extend benefits to the spouses and children of illegal aliens who died on the 11th -- but is still willing to exclude gay American citizens. If the families of illegal immigrants deserve to receive 9/11 funds -- and I believe they do -- then surely American citizens should be eligible for the same, without exception. Gay Americans were as horrified and saddened as anyone else by the attacks of September 11. We have donated money and time to help those directly affected. We have displayed American flags, and put our hard-earned money back into a wounded economy, as symbols of solidarity with our nation and our government. And now we are being told by that government that we are beneath consideration as citizens and as human beings. Please do not commit the loathesome injustice of repaying our patriotism -- to say nothing of the heroism of , , and others like them -- with indifference and contempt. Give the families and partners of gay and lesbian victims of September 11 the same consideration, and the same compensation, as heterosexuals who lost their loved ones. Individual Comment San Francisco, CA 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 dojR000257.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