R002923
March 18, 2002
Kenneth L. Zwick
Director, Office of Management Programs
Civil Division, US Department of Justice, Main Building
Room 3140
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20530
Mr. Zwick:
I am writing to protest your decision not to compensate same-sex domestic partners of 9/11 victims. The events of 9/11 were more horrible than most of us could have imagined and for most of us, our loved ones were home safe and sound watching with us. My heart goes out to those who were more directly affected and I am saddened to find that you are considering compounding the pain and suffering of a number of these people.
I read this morning of a woman who lost her partner of 12 years on one of the flights that crashed into the World Trade Center and she wasn't even able to call the airline directly because she was "not a family member." I think about my friend who was running late on the morning of 9/11 and didn't stop in at her office at the World Trade Center before going to Barnard to teach her morning class. What would have happened to family if she had perished in the World Trade Center. I am sure that her partner of over a decade would be grief stricken and this would be compounded by the fact that she would also be worried about losing the house that she and had purchased after many years of saving. I also think about my own family. I worked in the World Trade Center for quite some time before moving to Boston. Had I been a victim, my partner would have had to struggle to find information about me and would not have had any of the critical financial support that other families
have had. This would have been on top of her own grief and trying to explain my death to our 18-month-old son.
I am well aware of how divisive issues of sexual orientation are in this country. However, this is not the time for debate over these issues. Please do the right thing and treat same-sex partners with the same care, concern, compassion, and fairness as all the other victims of the terrorist attacks. Further punishing those who are already hurting so terribly would be a grave injustice.
Sincerely,
Individual Comment
Roslindale, MA