ATTACK - Kin of Civilians Need Help Too

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Current News - Homefront Preparations : One Thread

link

KIN OF CIVILIANS NEED HELP, TOO By ANDREA PEYSER --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

November 28, 2001 -- ELEVEN weeks later, some New Yorkers who lost loved ones on Sept. 11 are learning a terrible truth: All victims are not created equal. It has come to this.

Relatives of people killed in the World Trade Center - those who didn't wear uniforms to work - are turning bitter as their bills pile up.

Widows of ordinary Joes - dishwashers and bond traders, secretaries and maintenance men - say they've been turned away from charities set up to help families of cops, firefighters and emergency workers.

Some who lost their families' breadwinners have had difficulty gaining access to insurance and pensions. As the holiday season approaches, they're depending on relatives.

The saddest part is some families of "civilian" victims confess they're struggling with feelings of resentment against the kin of the uniformed men, because those families have access to such benefits as free college tuition.

"It's really not fair," said Star Ortiz, 21, who lost her husband, Paul, a computer technician. Since Sept. 11, Star, who has an 11-month-old daughter, has depended on her parents and small handouts from her husband's employer to make ends meet.

"He was there working," she said. "These people weren't there for pleasure."

Michael Cartier, who lost his brother, an electrician, is launching a letter-writing campaign to ask elected officials in Washington and Albany to help people like his parents, who have been saddled with their son's debts.

"What amazes me is how uninformed people are," said Cartier, 24. "The civilian families have no representation."

James Cartier, 26, was on the 105th floor of the south tower when a plane struck the other tower. He called his sister, Michele, who worked in a low floor of the north tower, to say he was on his way out.

Michele escaped unharmed. But James called back after the second plane struck - to say goodbye.

James Cartier was single. But his parents, who are retired and have seven children, are now forced to pay off his credit-card debt.

His brother has joined some 25 families who share information about benefits, which he posts on a Web site: www. giveyourvoice.com.

The uniformed men and women who died in the trade center are heroes. But if we pit the needs of their families against the others who experienced sudden, wrenching loss, we tarnish their memory.

-- Anonymous, November 28, 2001

Answers

link

Try that link again. It didn't go live for some reason in the post above.

I had wondered when it would become obvious that the families of the regular people that died there weren't getting any real help. I thought the Red Cross was supposed to help them and not just the rescue people.

-- Anonymous, November 28, 2001


Bill O'Reilly has been waging a one-man crusade against the Red Cross and United Way (in particular) because so few of the funds have been distributed. There are about 108 different charities for different things related (allegedly) to 9/11 and there are separate funds for emergency services personnel. There are also some routine benefits paid by the city to the families of any dead emergency workers, killed in the attacks or not.

When Giuliani found out that the special NY fund for emergency workers wasn't being handed out fast enough, he got right on it and checks started going out.

O''Reilly had a show either last night or night before where he found out from the United Way guy that they actually have two 9/11 funds, something his researchers hadn't been able to uncover in the two months he's been digging into this problem. That sent him ballistic! One is from the telethon and all funds go to the victims; the other is a general fund and any expenses can be paid out of it, including dipspit grants to the symphony and so on. See foxnews.com, click on O'Reilly's page and look for info re the charities. It's a horrible scandal and has been going on for years--decades. Give yer money to the Sally Army!

-- Anonymous, November 28, 2001


The problem is the Red Cross is just too damned big and too diverse anymore. The bigger an organization gets, the bigger their bureacracy gets. The more diverse their mission becomes, the harder it is for them focus on just one thing.

United Way? No way. I prefer to give directly to the charity--I want to know where my money is going.

I like the The Salvation Army, though. They are "small" enough and focused enough to still be effective without all the mountains of red tape.

-- Anonymous, November 28, 2001


Moderation questions? read the FAQ