Plans for the building of a memorial to 9-11 victims at New York's World Trade Center site are about to bog down in a church-state dispute. After the World Trade Center collapsed, two girders in the shape of a cross were left standing. They became a center of reverence for rescue workers, and religious services were held near the beams. They still remain standing at Ground Zero because clergy groups objected to their removal for storage. On Friday, according to the Associated Press, WTC Memorial Foundation President and CEO Gretchen Dykstra agreed to find some way to permanently display the girders in the memorial that is being built. In a letter to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Dykstra said: "We agree wholeheartedly that this important and essential artifact belongs at the WTC site and affirm that its respectful placement, possibly with the memorial museum, will be a considered part of our content planning process." She went on: "The artifact will be treated with utmost respect, but again as a public institution, we will not explicitly offer religious services in association with the artifact."
This decision does not set well with American Atheists. A press release e-mailed widely by AA yesterday reaffirms its long-standing opposition to including the cross as part of the memorial. The group's Communications Director, Dave Silverman, said that including the cross ignores the diverse background of the 9-11 victims. "It wasn't just certain types of Christians who died that day," he said. "Jews, Muslims, Atheists and others were victims of the terrorists. A memorial should be inclusive and remind us what we share in common as a nation, and not promote religious differences."
