A001677
Thursday, December 13, 2001 11:59 PM
Fair Treatment for September 11th Victims' Families
To Mr. Feinberg:
I am writing to urge you to ensure fair treatment
for all surviving
families of the tragedy on September 11th,
including the children and
families of low-wage workers and gay and lesbian
families.
Under traditional rules based on lost wages, the
survivors of a bond
trader earning millions of dollars per year might
receive thousands of
times as much compensation as the survivors of a
dishwasher in one of the
restaurants destroyed. Justice requires looking
far beyond the last
paycheck to the inherent worth of all those
killed, so that a high
minimum compensation level is set to lessen the
disparities. It would be a
double blow to the survivors to first lose their
loved one and then watch
as most of the taxpayer money went to those who
were already well off
in the first place.
The second major issue has to do with recognizing
the legitimacy of gay
and lesbian relationships and families. Gay and
lesbian families are
especially vulnerable when one partner is killed.
Because the option of
marriage is unavailable, these families may find
themselves in the
traumatic predicament of having to prove that
their union is legitimate.
Fortunately, both the Red Cross and the State of
New York have already
announced that they will not discriminate against
gay and lesbian
families. The Department of Justice should do the
same.
Thank you for considering my comments. I look
forward to hearing how
you will act on these very important issues.
Sincerely,
Individual Comment
Spearfish, SD