9/11 Families Boycotting City Memorial

http://www.nypress.com/blogx/display...m?bid=80518415

Tuesday, July 31, 2007

The families of a group of 9/11 victims are so angry the city is refusing to hold its annual memorial ceremony at ground zero that they’ve decided to organize their own. Mayor Bloomberg announced yesterday that the memorial would have to be moved to Zuccotti Park, just southeast of the site, because ongoing construction makes it too dangerous for a large public gathering. Bloomberg also argued that the change in location would serve as a symbolic gesture that the city has moved on since the attacks. But the families say that that just isn’t good enough: “This is not the site—it’s across the street,” Anthony Gardner, whose brother was killed in the attacks, told reporters. “You have a better view of a Burger King than the actual trade center site,” he said. The groups are expected to apply for permits for their own gathering later today.

The Port Authority has reportedly said that it is currently trying to find a way to let families visit ground zero that day. But according to Newsday, spokesman Steve Sigmund said relatives would not be given permission to hold a separate ceremony. Relatives would also be prohibited from descending into the 7-story pit to lay flowers, a ritual they have completed every year since the tragedy.