R001824
Monday, March 18, 2002 6:10 PM
The Victim Compensation Fund: un-American.
To whom it may concern,
I supposed that since I am a gay male this email will not be read and
responded to or that any action will be taken based on my comments. But
since I did still wake up in the United States this morning I feel I must
comment on the recent information I received regarding the 9/11 Victims
Compensation Fund.
I will quote from just about every gay American I have spoken to in the
last couple of days:
"I am outraged that gay and lesbian partners of those who died on September
11 are not automatically going to receive the same benefits as heterosexual
spouses."
Why?
Why doesn't this country consider the deaths of , , and so many others as valid as those of married heterosexual couples. Was there some Capital Hill memo advising all political figures that Gay people don't hurt, that gay people don't cry and suffer loss? Why shouldn't the partners of committed gay relationships
qualify for assistance.
To quote from an email I received:
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 remember that the surviving mates to these gay couples suffer
(emotionally and economically) as much as any heterosexual partner does.
Please remember that gay people happily pay tax's and donate to charities
and support this country as much as any heterosexual. Please remember that
straight or gay... our blood is as red as any other American. If you doubt
this please visit the 9/11 site and see if you can tell the difference in
the blood spots on the floor.
I am betting you won't be able to...
Thank you,
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