h. nazan ışık—
6 December 2015 —
It was a nice, sunny day in New York on Sunday, 6 December. The World Trade Center (WTC) was full, as always, with visitors, and some vendors still trying to sell pictures of the WTC before and after 9/11, 2001.
At the same time there was a rally at Ground Zero, outside the rebuilt 7 World Trade Center. New York politicians gathered to press Congress to renew the Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act before the winter recess. The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which provides health care and compensation for the 2001 terrorist attacks’ first responders and survivors, will expire in October 2016.
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Mayor Bill de Blasio, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, U.S. senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, and U.S. Representatives Carolyn Maloney, Jerry Nadler, Charles Ranger, Joseph Crowley were speakers who rallied with 9/11 first responders and families for the bill that provides health benefits for first responders who got ill after the Sept. 11 2001 terror attacks.
Representative Carolyn Maloney reminded that about 1,700 people had died from 9/11-related illnesses, more than 4,000 had received cancer diagnoses, more than 30,000 were sick, and more than 70,000 people suffered from 9/11 related ailments were under monitoring program.
Every speaker was sending a similar message to elected officials who are delaying the renewal process.
Mayor de Blasio said: “It is unpatriotic to ignore the needs of our first responders. It is un-American that this legislation is stalled. It’s immoral that help hasn’t come for people who did so much for us. […] The Congress should not leave Washington until our first responders get the help they need.”
“If this bill passes they (House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell) can legitimately call themselves American leaders, if this bill doesn’t pass we can legitimately call them American deserters,” said U.S. Rep Jerry Nadler.
U.S. Rep. Charles Ranger came to the microphone, started chanting: “Pass this bill,” and someone added “Now!” The crowd of nearly a hundred joined him “Pass this bill now!”
The bill would extend the World Trade Center Health Program, which is part of the Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. The program expired in Oct 2015.
But the most important, short but strong message came from 9-year-old Jack McNamara.
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He was standing silently next to his mother with a sign in his hand, which read: “Don’t let other dads die! Pass a fully funded permanent Zadroga Bill. I miss my dad, FDNY Firefighter John F. McNamara.” Mr. McNamara was diagnosed with cancer in 2006, and died in 2009.
The Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act —named after a first responder, James Zadroga, who died in 2006 — was first passed in 2010 and provides treatment and financial aid for 9/11-related illnesses including sinusitis, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD), mental health conditions and various cancers.
“Some of those illnesses take quite a while to develop, so this bill is very, very important,” said Police Commissioner Bill Bratton.
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Photographs © h. nazan ışık 2015, / nkendiken All rights reserved.