R000361
Tuesday, March 12, 2002 7:50 AM
Benefits for Gay Americans - 911 Fund
I just read an article that both shocked and saddened me about how
same-sex partners of those lost on September 11th may not receive the
same benefits as heterosexual partners of those lost.
The article is located here:
http://uspolitics.about.com/library/weekly/aa031102a.htm
September 11th has shown us the ugly face of hate in a way many
Americans have never seen it. The terrorists judged Americans for who
and what we are, and elected to punish us for it. On that terrible day,
they took the lives of people that they could not have possibly judged
as good or bad people, doing right or wrong in the world. We were all
labeled Americans and targeted for it.
Who are we to judge the value of our gay Americans... the quantity or
quality of their love, their commitment to each other, and the lives
that they built together? Same-sex partners of survivors are left no
less devastated or heartbroken by the loss of their loved one. Their
lives are no less destroyed than their heterosexual counterparts.
It's time, particularly right now in the face of trying to heal our
country from the horrible scars September 11th left behind, for us to be
very aware of whom we hurt on our own soil. Heart-wrenching events such
as these call for love and compassion to heal, not laws.
I ask you to reconsider your program's stance on providing benefits to
the loved ones of gay Americans lost on September 11th. If the purpose
of your program is to assist the loved ones of those lost; to help them
rebuild their lives, to help them to face the future without the partner
or parent they thought they'd have the opportunity to build that future
with, I urge you to make decisions on that criteria alone.
You have the power to do what it takes to make sure that these Americans
are honored and taken care of in an equal and just way. I do not want my
children's children to read about how gay Americans were discriminated
against in the aftermath of September 11th while others, even
non-Americans, were assisted, and wonder why. And they will wonder, just
as I wondered when reading my history books why African-Americans were
discriminated against in this country.
I beg you to give this issue serious consideration, and not overlook the
fact that the love shared between any two people is as real and true as
the hate that brought us to this moment.
Individual Comment
Alexandra, Virginia