Remembering 9/11 for New Yorkers

As the United States approaches the fifth year anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11th, the barriers surrounding the 16-acre site where the Twin Towers once stood have become an interim chapel. While political pundit and New York Times bestselling author Ann Coulter chides the 9/11 families for daring to claim Ground Zero as sacred space, for those family members left without even a body to bury, this spot represents the last place where their loved one was seen alive. For them, this is holy ground.

Treating this land as though nothing happened here would be akin to say building a Wal-Mart at Gettysburg. Lest we forget, close to over 400 uniformed rescue personnel lost their lives while performing the most successful rescue operation in United States history leading over 25,000 people to safety. (Why the Gettysburg battlefield has been designated a National Park while the former World Trade Center [WTC] site remains a gaping hole in the ground and ashes containing human remains lie in a garbage dump ironically named Fresh Kills lies beyond my comprehension.)

Family members, survivors, rescue workers, friends and visitors pilgrimage to this site to morn, pray, and reflect, leaving behind candles, flowers, teddy bears and personal mementos such as mass cards, photographs of loved ones that died on 9/11 and handwritten notes. Since a memorial has yet to be built at Ground Zero, visitors also pay their respects at the FDNY 9/11 Memorial Sculpture located next to Tenhouse on 124 Liberty Street, St. Josephs Chapels 9/11 tribute to the rescue workers at 385 South Street, and the NYPD police memorial in Battery Park.