Freedom Tower or One World Trade Center?

Lots of folks were upset this week when the Port Authority announced the name change from Freedom Tower to One World Trade Center. The building is to be the tallest of five planned buildings at the site of the 2001 attacks. Symbolically the name "Freedom Tower" is supposed to represent our triumph over terrorism by rebuilding.

A number of the relatives of 9/11 victims are against the name change. Rosaleen Tallon said,"My gut reaction is calling a building the World Trade Center when it really isn't the World Trade Center is pretty creepy." She lost her brother Sean, a 26-year-old probationary firefighter with Ladder 10, on 9/11.

Debra Burlingame, whose brother was the pilot of the plane that crashed into the Pentagon, said, "If we can't say the word freedom out loud, God help us. I understand the decision from a marketing point of view. But it saddens me that it's no longer economically viable to declare who we are."

Last year Gov. Pataki told the NYTimes, “It is a little troubling to me that again there is a 1 World Trade Center, because a lot of great people and a lot of true heroes died in 1 World Trade Center. I think that name should be reserved, for those who did die on that horrible day.” Pataki coined the name Freedom Tower two years after 9/11.

Mayor Bloomburg's response? "If they name this 1 World Trade Center, people will still call it the Freedom Tower.” He's probably right about that. I still call CVS "Eckerds" and the Circle K is still the "7-11." Until recently I still called it the "Pak-a-Sak."

The Port Authority contends that One World Trade Center is the actual legal name and as they move into leasing the building, it might be nice to call it by that name. So far, ten floors have been built.

CNN reported Thursday "the signing of a lease that will create the China Center, a 190,810-square-foot business and cultural facility, to be on portions of the 64th floor and the entire 65th through 69th floors of One World Trade Center. Hailing it as a great day for the Port Authority and its partners in the China center, Port Authority Executive Director Chris Ward added, 'this is the first step in a long journey as downtown is finally rebuilt.'"

Port Authority Chairman Anthony Coscia refused to answer when asked if the name Freedom Tower would appear anywhere on the building.

It seems to me we are missing the point. We could take offense that the word "freedom" is removed, as some have. I don't think it's a political correctness issue. I actually prefer the name Freedom Tower but the point is that the towers are rising again and that's the best evidence we can show that America will not be defeated by terrorism. If changing the name helps the PA lease the space, then more power to 'em. What we want in that space is the phoenix risen from the ashes - we want fully leased, thriving buildings filled with life, tenants, and a future.

9/11/2001

Because I know you are dying to know, I will tell you where I was on 9/11/2001.

It was my first year at my current school; my 6th year teaching. I was on the second floor of the main building and we were wrapping up first block. Then the intercom buzzed and our principal came on with the announcement that the WTC had been attacked. My principal was an officer in the Army Reserves and I knew he had full comprehension of the gravity of the situation. The news was more than I could absorb right then, as it was with most everyone.

Our school is very near a large Air Force Base and we have lots of "base kids" enrolled. Many of them were considering the implications to come for their own families, I suspect. I know that Steve was. He was working at my school at that time as a school resource officer. As a member of the Army Reserves, he knew immediately what HIS implications were going to be.

My off-period was second block. I went to the school library where the big TV had been rolled out and tuned into Fox News. Many faculty members drifted in and out in the 90 minutes I was there just to see it for themselves. As with most Americans, I can still see those images as clearly as if it happened just yesterday. I remember Steve sitting at a table nearby, eyes glued to the screen, not moving. Knowing what was to come. He knew he would be activated. Our principal would be too.

Eventually I returned to my classroom. Numb, I walked through the breezeway, back to the main building. I remember, crystalized in time forever, looking up at the sky. It was clear sky blue; not a cloud in sight. There was a slight breeze and a lovely fall nip in the air. Such a beautiful day. Not one plane in the sky. Silent.

Later that night, in the dark, I sat on my deck and looked upward. Trying to comprehend the day's events. What struck me most was the stillness of the night; the silence. No planes.

George Bush came to Barksdale, AFB that day on his way back to Washington. He promised the nation that he would fight terror. He promised the nation to do everything in his power to keep 9/11 from happening again. He has kept his word. It has not happened again. I don't want to make this a political debate; you can give me all those tired arguments against Iraq, how he's not captured Osama, all of it. But he has kept his promise. I believe history will be the legacy of George Bush. Love him or hate him, history will be his judge, not you. Or me.

Every year since 9/11, my journal topic for my students has been along the lines of "where were you when 9/11 happened and how did it affect you personally or change your life?" Over the past year or two, more and more of them don't even remember what they were doing. I thought it would be one of those pivotal generational moments, like when Kennedy was shot. You'd always remember it. Now I get responses like, "Gosh, I guess I was in elementary school but I don't really remember."

I think on this day we should be non-partisan and come together, once again, as a nation. I don't think we should ever forget.