CONTACT
Ted Walter
917-627-8467
tedwalter [at] nyccan.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 15, 2009
9/11 Families, First Responders and Survivors Gather at City Hall to
Endorse 2009 Ballot Referendum to Establish New Official 9/11 Investigation
in NYC, Call on New Yorkers for Support
New York – Outside City Hall today relatives of 9/11 victims, first responders
and survivors of the September 11th attacks gathered to endorse a November ballot
initiative to establish a new 9/11 investigation under the auspices of the city
government of New York. Support on the street is high, the group says, and polls
indicate a majority of New Yorkers wants a new investigation.
On June 24, the group leading the ballot initiative, the New York City Coalition
for Accountability Now (NYC CAN) filed a petition containing 52,000 signatures
with the office of the City Clerk. The official filing initiated a 60-day period
specified in Section 37 of the New York Municipal Home Rule Law in which the
City Council is asked to review the petition and approve its placement on the
upcoming November ballot.
Since this milestone filing, the group has gathered an additional 15,000 signatures
and received several endorsements from prominent leaders. Renowned whistleblower
and former FBI agent Coleen Rowley, who TIME magazine selected as one of three
“Persons of the Year” in 2002, endorsed a new investigation yesterday,
as reported by RAWSTORY (http://rawstory.com/blog/2009/07/ex-fbi-agent-why-i-support-a-new-911-investigation/).
Bill Doyle, who lost his son Joseph, has been an outspoken leader of an active
community of relatives of the 9/11 victims and he too released a statement endorsing
a new inquiry in New York. Joining Doyle in support as signatory to an NYC CAN
online petition is Christine O’Neil, wife of ex-FBI Agent John O’Neil, who was
killed on the job at the World Trade Center and Lorie Van Auken, a widow from
New Jersey and former member of the 9/11 Family Steering Committee.
Manny Badillo, who lost his uncle Thomas, and who serves NYC CAN as Director
of Outreach, said in an opening statement “Thomas Keane and Lee Hamilton,
the Chairmen of the 9/11 Commission, after issuing their report, both admitted
that the Commission was unsuccessful. In their own words, the Commission was
‘Set Up To Fail’.” Sen Cleland called it a national scandal.
Badillo was joined by 9/11 victim family members Donna Marsh O’Connor and Bob
McIlvaine, and survivor Janette MacKinlay, all members of the NYCCAN Executive
Council who also made impassioned statements of support. Eileen Coles, an US
Air Force Desert Storm veteran and former intelligence officer, stated, “Our
only way forward to restore our national honor is to answer the questions and
demand accountability. This will not happen without a truly impartial and scientific
examination of the evidence.”
NYC CAN is non-partisan organization comprised of 9/11 Families, First Responders,
Survivors and proud, concerned citizens committed to bringing about an independent,
impartial investigation into the events of September 11. For more info: http://www.nyccan.org