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Citizens Union

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"A Memorial To The Victims Of 9/11 And A Monument To America"


Daniel Looney, Kenneth Kunken, attorneys; Anna Blazejczyk, designer

My name is Daniel Looney. I'm here with Ken Kunken, who's sitting in the back of the auditorium in a wheelchair. We both live on Long Island, we're prosecutors in the Nassau County District Attorney's office, and this is Anna Blazejczyk, who is a student at Nassau Community College in graphic design.

We, like so many people in the New York City area, have lost residents in our communities, where we work and where we live. We have a proposal to honor all the victims of this tragedy. Our concept is first and foremost a memorial to the victims of 9/11. Secondly, it's a monument to America.

The centerpiece would be a large tower, following the design of the original towers. There would be no fitting memorial without recognizing the victims from Washington and Pennsylvania who also perished on 9/11. The tower would sit on a pentagon-shaped base, in honor of those who died in Washington, and the entrance would be flanked by two grass fields, in honor of the people who died on Flight 93 in Sunset County, Pennsylvania.

The base would have the World Trade Center museum which follows the history of the World Trade Center from its construction to 9/11 and its aftermath. There would also be computer stations with information about all the victims.

The front of the base would be the World Trade Center memorial wall with the names of the victims and emblems and flags of their respective countries. These walls would have inspirational sayings and quotes from President George W. Bush, Governor George Pataki, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and former mayor Rudolph Giuliani. The memorial wall would face out onto a large reflecting pool.

The tower itself would be an open metal structure rising to the highest point above Lower Manhattan, with four glass elevators taking you up the four corners to the observation deck.

At the pinnacle of this sight would be a large American Eagle rising above the tower. The eagle has been a symbol of America since the founding fathers first adopted it, and it would represent the traits we saw so evident in New York City on September 11, traits such as courage and strength. It would be a symbol to everyone who comes to New York City that the American spirit endured, rose from its destruction and ultimately prevailed.

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