R001387
Sunday, March 17, 2002 11:09 AM
UNAMERICAN DISCRIMINATION OF 9/11 FUND
To the 9/11 FUND, and those of us Americans WATCHING.
Please make clear to America that you have made a mistake, deciding
to dishonor those heroes of the 9/11 tragedy who had gay or lesbian
partners, by disregarding their relationships or treating them as somehow
lesser under the "law." They
will not necessarily receive the same benefits as the spouses
of heterosexual victims of the horrible terror attacks? Please, please recant.
Americans of conscience are outraged.
Even fetuses and illegal aliens will be receiving benefits -- despite
FEDERAL LAW those families won't kick out the families of illegal aliens,
nor will they punish American companies that
hired illegals in violation of federal labor laws!
But when it comes to gay and lesbian heroes of the day - who helped bring down the flight in Pennsylvania, NY Fire
Dept. who died in the line of
duty when the first tower fell, and who was
of the plane that crashed into the Pentagon --THERE WERE MANY
OTHERS- - we are told the law is the law and no exceptions can be made.
Americans of conscience know this is not true.
PLEASE! ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
If September 11 has taught us anything, it's that our
patriotism and love of country transcend our differences and
unite us all. We were told that September 11 was the day
that "hyphenated-Americans" were no more, and rather than
being Italian-Americans, African-Americans or gay-Americans,
we were now simply Americans, all of us together as one
American family. Apparently, that family just got a divorce.
The hyphens seem not to matter when our government wants to
use our heroism to inspire others, but when it comes time to
actually aid the families of those heroes, the hyphens come
back with a vengeance, and it seems that some American heroes
are now more equal than others.
Please honor all the heroes and victims by remembering them all equally.
"Minority" is no longer an acceptable excuse for discrimination or
disenfranchisement in this great country.
Individual Comment