Pride Jewelry

One of the largest man made tragedies of the United States of America happened exactly 8 years ago today. September 11, 2001 is a time no one will forget. Whether you were in Manhattan that fateful day, in Pennsylvania or on the other side of the earth, you know what happened and you know it was a dreadful act. Whether it was a George W Bush and Dick Cheney conspiracy or CIA covert plan as some say, or it was Al-Qaeda or even some other terrorist group, that isn’t what is important this day.

What is important is that we all take the day to remember those who fell on that day and all they gave to the world before they were lost in a storm of fire and concrete. The policemen, volunteers, firefighters, those who were unfortunate enough to be above where the planes crashed into the two towers as well as on all the planes used in this organized act of terror.

There are many heroes among those who died that day, acts of extreme kindness and I bet there were extreme acts of selfishness as well on the part of some, that is just the way the world works. But again, virtually all those who died were victims, maybe even the hijackers were in some ways as well. Someone used them to further their own agenda, probably brainwashing them into thinking that what they were doing was for the greater good.

My point is, thousands upon thousands of families are forever scarred by what happened on September 11, 2001 and even those of us who didn’t know any who died, wept for those lost and those left behind.

I have one thing to say to the terrorists who committed this act, whoever they may be. If their goal was to tear down the United States of America and make it weaker, they failed miserably. What the falling of the towers did was bring Americans together in a way they haven’t been in decades. People were more patriotic and determined to stand tall against such loss regardless of their pain. In fact, those who steered the planes into the towers and those who had them do it probably kick themselves daily because it did exactly what they didn’t want it to do. It didn’t break America, it only made Americans stronger.

Let’s all take today to appreciate how lucky we are, embrace friends and family and even your coworkers, volunteer and help someone in need today. Show the world that America cannot be broken by fear.

And last but definitely not least, let’s all give thanks for the brave men and women who were running into the building to help while everyone else was fleeing. And not just to those who perished in the fires and the collapse, but those who survived with trauma most of us cannot even begin to fathom. They deal with terrible health issues that the government refuses to help them deal with not to mention the emotional scars that may never heal.

Thank you all, for your sacrifice and your heroic nature. Without you thousands more would certainly have died in this act of terror.

While I feel that everyone who died in and around the World Trade Center buildings and the various planes involved in the attack on the US is equal, none more important than another, I would like to point out some of the gays and lesbians among the victims. I am doing this simply because it’s not a topic I’ve come across before and since this is generally a blog for the LGBT community I feel it is appropriate. This is most likely not a full list of lesbians and gays killed on 9/11 but it is what I could find on those who were openly gay:

Father Mychal Judge is one of the more famous of those who died in the World Trade Center collapse. He was an openly gay man who was a New York Fire Department Catholic chaplain. At the age of 68, he was crushed while ministering to a fallen firefighter at Ground Zero. His helmet was actually given to the Pope, which I have to say surprises me considering the church’s stance on gays. Apparently there is a movement within the Catholic Church elevate Fr. Mychal to sainthood. Another important change thanks to him and his sacrifice took place in June 2002 when the the then President Bush signed the Mychal Judge Act, granting federal money to some of the survivors of the Twin Towers and their same sex partners as well as the same sex partners of those on the planes.

Mark Bingham is another name that many came to know in the following days as more and more information came out about in the days following the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in rural Pennsylvania. He came incredibly close to living through that fateful day by arriving late for the flight. He just, just, barely made it on. While he may not be what many Americans think of as your typical hero, what with not having a wife and kids at home, what with being gay and all, but a hero is exactly what he was.

Bingham was known well and people loved him in San Francisco where he lived. He was a graduate of Berkeley and went on to become a public relations executive, a graduate of Berkeley. He loved sports and according to his employer at the time he was a special guy with “a very sensitive, creative side.”

Andrew Sullivan, who is a gay former editor of the New Republic magazine, has publicly stated that: “The media portrayal of gays (lots of it by gays themselves) is as effeminate, etc, as well as my personal experience with gays my age, most of whom seemed little interested in military service or aggressive pursuits in general… Well, as we found out last week, Mark Bingham could cut it. He’s a hero, plain and simple. I simply can’t say to myself any more that gays have no place in the military.”

Carol Flyzik’s was on American Airlines Flight 11 which was the first plane to hit the Twin Towers. She was 40, lived with her partner of over 12 years with whom she was raising three children with. When her partner Nancy tried to contact the airline to check on the status and if her loved one, her wife for all intents and purposes, was on that plane or not they refused to deal with her claiming that she wasn’t Carol’s family. Nancy was left to worry and suffer because the world didn’t and still doesn’t recognize the rights of gay partnerships.

It wasn’t until Carol’s sister finally got in touch with the airline, more than 9 hours after Nancy had first heard of the situation on television, that she got confirmation that her partner was indeed on the plane and presumed dead. The fact that Flyzik hadn’t made a will further complicated matters legally . That is when Glaad stepped in and helped her successfully win compensation from the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund.

David Charlebois was the gay co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, when it hit the Pentagon leaving behind Tom Hay, partner of almost 13 years, . He was actually a member of the National Gay Pilots Association. During a march for the National Gay Pilots Association in the Millennium March on Washington in 2000 he helped to carry the banner. He didn’t just walk it once either, he did it again with the Gay and Lesbian Employees of American Airlines (GLEAM). He was involved in helping those in the gay community in any way he could. He wanted to stand up and admit he was gay in order to help make it easier for others to do the same. Charlebois also helped to raise money for the Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League.

Ronald Gamboa, 33 and his partner of 13 years Dan Brandhorst, 42, were on board United Airlines Flight 175 which is the plane that crashed into the second World Trade Center Tower. As if their loss wasn’t bad enough, they were traveling with their 3-year-old adopted son, David who also perished along with everyone else on board. Brandhorst and Gamboa founded the Pop Luck Club, which is Los Angeles organization set up to help gay men adopt children.

John Keohane was at work near the World Trade Center when the planes hit and since he wasn’t in the buildings or on a plane he was not immediately injured at all. What happened was once the planes hit the building he met up with his partner of 17 years, Mike Lyons there on the street and called his mom to tell her he was okay. He, like most of the other people in the area were outside watching the towers and while on the phone he thought he saw or heard a third plane hit one of the buildings but it was the sound of the South tower of the World Trade Center. Falling debris killed Keohane while his partner survived only to commit suicide only three months later. He too became a victim of The World Trade canter crashes.

There are many more brave and loving gays who were lost on Sept 11, 2001 Our hearts and prayers go out to them and their families.

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