Report on the 5th Annual 9/11 Film Festival
A Benefit for Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance, Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth
and NYC Coalition for Accountability NowSeptember 11th, 2009 – Last year when the Bush/Cheney regime was voted out of office, there was rejoicing at the possibility of change for the better. Sadly, however, the looting of the country, the expansion of war, and the policies of torture and rendition continue under Obama, who has cited the “myth” of 9/11 as justification for a continuation of the foreign and domestic policies pushed by the last administration.
Remembering, Questioning, Challenging
Continuity of GovernmentWith the anniversary of the attacks drawing closer, the Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance began planning our 5th annual 9/11 film festival, the 8th annual 9/11 truth rally and march, and working in support of other events and campaigns: notably Richard Gage’s talk at the Commonwealth Club on “9/11 Blueprint for Truth: The Architecture of Destruction,” and the New York City Coalition for Accountability Now (NYCCAN) efforts to get an initiative on the ballot calling for a new investigation of 9/11.
2009 saw the publication of a paper by Dr. Niels Harrit, Dr. Steven Jones, and 7 other authors in the Bentham Open Chemical Physics Journal chronicling the presence of ignited and unignited nanothermite in the WTC dust. In August the truth movement had some positive breakthroughs. A Denver public television station aired two 9/11 truth documentaries--“9/11 Press for Truth” and Gage’s “9/11: Blueprint for Truth.” National Geographic was scheduled to air a documentary on 9/11 featuring Richard Gage, Steven Jones, David Ray Griffin, and Dylan Avery that would include the destruction of World Trade Center 7. Not surprisingly, considering National Geographic’s treatment of Peter Lance’s book Triple Cross, the National Geographic special edited out the most important information and facts presented by Jones, Griffin, and Gage. This was reminiscent of the mainstream media treatment of those questioning the Kennedy assassination; each time compelling evidence or information is brought to light, a robust attack upon the messenger and message is launched by the defenders of the official story. A Pew Research survey reports that confidence in the media is at an all-time low with less than a third (29%) saying that the media generally gets the facts right and 63% saying that news stories are often inaccurate.
The National Geographic special tried to frame the truth movement’s most visible spokespeople as unscientific, well-meaning, conspiracy kooks. Another major assault came in the form of an attack upon a member of the Obama administration who had signed the 911Truth.org petition. A right-wing blogger cut and paste a couple of articles posted at Rense.com together to accuse Van Jones of being on the organizing committee of the first march demanding a congressional investigation of 9/11 back in January 2002. Fox National News called me to verify the story, and I assured them that Jones knew nothing about the march (which I had organized), and that the article that mentioned that Jones was on the organizing committee only referred to the debut of an Oakland anti-war publication called War Times. I suspect the attack upon Jones was to send a much broader message to any current or future politicians, that “to challenge the official 9/11 story would be political suicide.”
In August and September I worked to find newspapers, bookstores, and radio stations to support and sponsor the 9/11 film festival. Because we didn’t have much lead time, we simply approached those who had helped us in the past and bookstores that generally support KPFA events. Before the film festival, the SF Weekly attacked the film festival and our sponsors, even phoning them and persuading a few of the bookstores to withdraw their public support for the event.
Richard Gage, AIA, speaking at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco September 8, 2009On September 8th Gage’s presentation to a nearly full house at the Commonwealth Club received a standing ovation, and on September 9th an excellent cover story on Gage came out in the Silicon Valley Metro entitled “Explosive Theory.”
September 9th, 2009 - Cover StoryThe only television station that expressed an interest in the 9/11 film festival was Swedish TV, which arrived on September 8th and interviewed Dylan Avery in the afternoon of the 9th, before the world premiere of “Loose Change 9/11: An American Coup.” At the same time, Ken Jenkins and others were setting up lights and equipment to shoot David Ray Griffin’s talks. Janette MacKinlay with the help of Scott Beery was setting up her dramatic Ikebana floral arrangement onstage entitled “Wake-Up Call,” which consisted of two blue towers swathed in explosive red and white leaves and branches. The arrangement was the largest Ikebana endeavor that Janette ever undertook. We hung up the 10’ large “NYCCAN vote for answers!” banner at the entrance to the theater. Slowly and steadily people filled the theater. Considering that we were unable to finalize the program and begin our publicity/outreach until less than a month before the event, we had a respectable turnout of between 350 and 400 people. Before the program began, Vic Sadot and Jeremy Goodfeather played their guitars and sang a few songs.
"Wake Up Call" by Janette MacKinlayOur mistress of ceremonies, Bonnie Faulkner, host of KPFA’s “Guns and Butter,” (who has hosted 4 of our 5 film festivals) welcomed the audience and introduced Mike Daly, an Ironworkers 377 member who was born and raised in the NYC metro area--a steel industry construction manager and member of the LaborFest Organizing Committee, as well as a delegate to the Bay Area Labor Councils. Mike had persuaded Rachel Maguire to allow us to show a 27-minute excerpt of her film “Metal of Honor,” which allowed those who built the World Trade Center and who immediately pitched in with the rescue work to tell their story.
Metal of HonorOne of the great tragedies of 9/11 was the government’s false assurances about the safety of the air in the wake of the attacks. The first responders were hardest hit and have suffered from their exposure to the toxic dust; over 800 have died. We listed in the program the names of over 100 of them , as well as a diagram and some information about the “Captive Fund” – the billion dollars designated by Congress for the health needs of those who did the clean-up at ground zero. So far, almost none of this money has gone to those who need it, but hundreds of millions of dollars have gone towards administrative costs and fighting the legitimate health claims of the victims.
Mike DalyOur next speaker was Richard Gage, AIA, who gave us an update on Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth, following the 10-minute version of “Blueprint for Truth.” Richard’s tireless work in the past three years has greatly increased the credibility and visibility of the truth movement. He was moved to become involved after hearing David Ray Griffin speak on Bonnie’s “Guns and Butter” radio show about the testimony released through the efforts of the New York Times describing explosions in the WTC buildings.
Richard Gage at the 9/11 Film FestivalDavid Ray Griffin spoke briefly on Osama bin Laden, the subject of his recent book and the basis of the myth that has been used to expand the war into Pakistan and increase troop levels in Afghanistan. He cited many reports that Osama bin Laden was dead and that the videos of him were fabrications used for political purposes.
David Ray Griffin at the 9/11 Film FestivalDylan Avery introduced his final new “Loose Change” film. Despite the big budget (compared with his first film), and the cooperation of the narrator Daniel Sunjata, and his intent to not actually have to do all the editing himself, Dylan found himself once again at the editing table. He spent a month editing the film in order to have it done and produced in time for the 8th anniversary.
Dylan Avery at the 9/11 Film Festival“Loose Change 9/11: An American Coup” opens with the Reichstag fire and reviews key points in history that set the stage for 9/11, before beginning to lay out compelling new evidence that contradicts the official narrative. Without historical context, 9/11 is a traumatizing, incomprehensible event. Exposing the larger historical patterns nurtures the possibility of breaking the pattern. The film includes Janette MacKinlay, who provided the dust that she collected from her apartment across the street from the World Trade Center to Dr. Steven Jones. Dr. Jones provides the highlights of his latest research on the chemical composition of the dust, which can be traced to US military labs. The film challenges the viewer to become involved, to not allow the criminals behind 9/11 to get away with it or repeat it on a larger scale.
Peter B. Collins, another local radio personality, helped with Q&A. Dylan was joined by producer Korey Rowe and together they explained how the film was made for the general public and how they hoped that it would reach a much wider and broader audience through retail distribution at major chain stores. Dylan also explained, for perhaps the thousandth time, the concept behind the title “Loose Change,” which he conceived of as unstoppable, uncontainable change.
Q&A with Korey Rowe and Dylan Avery at the Premiere of "Loose Change 9/11: An American Coup"
The final film of the evening was “7/7 Ripple Effect,” the British “Loose Change,” produced by Muad’ Dib. The film was originally released over the Internet on Guy Fawkes Day, the day of the first “false flag operation,” which was a catalyst for war between Britain and Spain and between Catholics and Protestants. The film opens with a BBC program on a drill about how government officials and the media would behave in response to a terrorist attack, which was remarkably similar to the one that took place on 7/7/2005. The film is a damning look at the impossibility of the official 7/7 story and at the media that has tried to sell that story to the public.
Muad’ Dib was arrested after he sent a DVD of his film to the court that was trying three young men who knew the “7/7 alleged suicide bombers.” Out on bail, he is now appealing the attempt to extradite him to the U.K. I spoke after the film, substituting for Gabriel Day who was the most knowledgeable about the situation in the UK and the international 9/11 truth movement. I shared my own experiences with the media and tried to explain how the court cases against “alleged terrorists” and “their friends” serve to support the official myths and draw attention away from the culprits in higher office who have the means and motive to attempt these crimes.
On Thursday, September 10th, appropriately enough, President Obama declared:
“Because the terrorist threat continues, the national emergency declared on September 14, 2001, and the powers and authorities adopted to deal with that emergency, must continue in effect beyond September 14, 2009. Therefore, I am continuing in effect for an additional year the national emergency the former President declared on September 14, 2001, with respect to the terrorist threat.”
The first film featured was “Fabled Enemies” by Jason Bermas, which examines the links between the alleged hijackers and the US military, as well as evidence of the involvement of other intelligence agencies. Ken Jenkins spoke afterwards on how false flag operations affect targeted populations and how ignorance of history and the mechanics of psychological operations allow similar ruses to be used again and again.
“Kill the Messenger” told the story of Sibel Edmonds, perhaps the most gagged person in US history. The film revealed what she couldn’t say herself, what she learned from her work as a translator for the FBI, whose whistle-blowing efforts got her fired. She started the National Security Whistleblowers Coalition. Mickey Huff gave an update on her more recent activities, which include speaking under oath for five hours about how the Turkish government and a network of lobby groups and high-ranking U.S. officials and Congressmen have engaged in treason and blackmail. Among the Executive branch, Congress, and the media, Sibel Edmonds blames the media the most for the inaction and lack of accountability regarding the treasonous behavior of high government officials. (Mickey Huff directed people to learn more at Bradblog.com) Mickey also spoke of Project Censored and Media freedom International and how we all need to fight to bring the facts to light.
Fabled Enemies by Jason Bermas
“The New American Century” by the Italian filmmaker Massimo Mazzucco detailed the history of the Project for a New American Century, as well as the history of US false flag operations. It also looked at Unocal’s activities in Afghanistan before and after 9/11, and Halliburton’s “cost plus” contract with the US military and spending spree in Iraq. The film also included the “shooting spree”—the gleeful, murderous war crimes committed by US soldiers as well as contractors in Iraq. Paul Rea, a film critic and author of a paper entitled ““The Zealots of Dominance: The Neocon Factor in 9/11” ,” helped us to transition from the emotionally heart-wrenching scenes of the film towards a more analytical grasp of the neocons. He observed that the neocons
Kill the Messenger by Mathieu Verboud and Jean R. Viallett"Star Wars and False Flag Terrorism," a short ten-minute piece, looked at the Star Wars saga and the series of false flag operations and deceptions in that saga that transform the republic into an empire.
tend to be absolutist, black/white thinkers, who see "the free world" as near absolutely good and any challengers to its hegemony as inherently evil
tend to obsess on power, especially military power, and to be sociopathic about the human consequences caused by militarism
after the Cold War, needed a new enemy and chose Islam
although they are often called "intellectuals," this is appropriate if the term is restricted to those who think and push ideas, but not if the term refers to "people who seek the truth."
Swami Beyondananda warned everyone that we were running late and to turn back our watches twenty minutes to solve the problem. (It was my fault that we were running behind schedule. We had received the director’s cut of “Kill the Messenger,” which was 80 minutes long, to show at the festival, but I had written the schedule based on the version available to me at the time, which was the 52-minute edited television version. We decided not to axe any part of the program, instead continuing to run 30 to 40 minutes late by the time David Ray Griffin spoke.) After the seriousness of the preceding films, the swami was a refreshing antidote and drew many laughs and applause.
Jeremy Goodfeather singing "The Truth About It" at the 9/11 Film FestivalMusicians Jeremy Goodfeather and Vic Sadot performed their best songs before the evening program, including “The Truth About It” and “Cheney’s in the Bunker,” which were much appreciated by the audience.
Eric Nadler introduced his film “Anthrax War,” a very sobering look at the bioweapons industry, which cannot be separated from the vaccine industry. The film opened with the anthrax attacks upon Congress and the media in the wake of 9/11 and the deafening silence on the part of the media when the anthrax was traced to US military labs. At the end of the film Francis Boyle warns that because government and corporations will not stop the expansion of research into deadly pathogens that threaten humanity, it really is up to us to stop them.
Eric Nadler and Tich's video on the 9/11 Film Festival (See- Nadler's post on 9/11, Anthrax & Truth)Perhaps because this was new material to many in the audience, some of the harder questions about the latest media and legislative threats regarding the engineered H1N1 Swine Flu Pandemic and the dangers of mass vaccinations. were not raised during the Q&A.
Janette MacKinlay spoke on behalf of NYCCAN, sharing the good news that the signatures on the petitions (over 80,000 now) to put an initiative on the ballot to establish a new investigation into 9/11 with subpoena power had been approved and urging people to support the New York City effort.
Janette MacKinlay speaking on behalf of NYCCANPeter Phillips, former director of Project Censored, explained, as a sociologist, why there was so much resistance to 9/11 truth and suggested a new strategy for the movement. Peter cited studies showing that people have emotional attachment to their beliefs and seek information that confirms them rather than seeking the facts of the matter. The media have failed to convey the most important information regarding events that shape everyone’s lives, thus crippling people’s ability to distinguish between what is real and what is not; Peter called this a truth emergency and suggested that we align ourselves with bottom-up, critical thinking, fact-finding, participatory-democracy, election-reform, and media-reform efforts, thus including 9/11 truth as one aspect of a much larger assault upon the public mind.
David Ray Griffin gave the keynote on the topic of his latest book, The Mysterious Collapse of World Trade Center 7 and Why the Final Official Report is Unscientific and False, presenting a solid condemnation of NIST’s assertion that “thermal expansion” due to office fires triggered the unprecedented disintegration of the 47-story World Trade Center 7 late in the afternoon of September 11th, 2001.
The evening closed with a call to action from activists organizing freeway blogging and truth actions on September 11th of this year and the 8th annual 9/11 Truth rally and march to the Power to the Peaceful festival on Saturday in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Four 9/11 Truth videos were played at the end of the evening, and many people headed for the lobby to talk and get books signed by Eric Nadler and David Ray Griffin.
The four music videos were-
“Heroes” by Dem Bruce Lee Styles
“9/11 Truth and Proof” by Joel Kohn (the Joe of “Joe and Mo auditorials.com")
"The Truth About It" performed by Jeremy Goodfeather and produced by John Parulis
“9/11 Building 7” by Martin Noakes
“911’s a Lie” by the Free Bees
David Ray Griffin signing a book for Joel KohnSince people came and went from Wednesday evening through Thursday afternoon and evening, the audience varied in size, and some people spent most of their time in the lobby networking. I would estimate that between 300 and 400 people attended each day; slightly more on Wednesday than on Thursday. Considering that the previous film festivals were one-day events and therefore attracted larger numbers on the single day of the event, this year’s film festival can be considered a success not only as reflected in attendance but also in raising awareness, generating media coverage, and raising about $5000 for the continuing efforts of the Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance, NYCCAN and ae911Truth.org.
Scott Page and Scott Sheckman, in the lobby, working behind the scenesDespite the lack of sleep, activists were up early on the 11th to do freeway blogging, and to bake cookies for the truth actions in San Francisco. Eric Nadler and his cameraman showed up for the actions In San Francisco and started interviewing people. He is considering doing a documentary on the Truth movement.
Freeway blogging, September 11, 2009, Berkeley
Freeway blogging, September 11, 2009, BerkeleyFriday night it rained, which added to the logistical challenges of setting up booths at Speedway Meadows in Golden Gate Park and preparing for the rally and march. Generally it is a huge challenge to get there early in the morning in time to set up a booth, especially on the heels of all the other 9/11 events we have been organizing, so I was surprised that Chuck and I actually arrived at the rallying point in the Panhandle on time on Saturday morning. We set up the banners and the sound system under a slight drizzle of rain and waited for people to arrive. Later we learned that there were actually two rallies taking place in the Panhandle that morning, ours at Ashbury and another at Baker Street. Due to miscommunications, one location was posted on the website and sent to the email list while the other was printed on the 5,000 cards that were widely distributed. Several of us spoke at the Ashbury location, including myself, Jeremy Begin (author of "Fighting for G.O.D. (Gold, Oil, and Drugs)", William Veale, the lawyer who launched a civil case on behalf of April Gallop against former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, former Vice President Dick Cheney, and former US Air Force General Richard Myers, who was acting chairman of the joint chiefs on 9/11.
8th Annual 9/11 Truth Rally at the Panhandle, San Francisco
8th Annual 9/11 Truth Rally at the Panhandle, San FranciscoEventually the Baker Street group joined us at Ashbury, including singer Vic Sadot and several large banners. We had to negotiate with the police a bit before we were able to march (with a police escort) along our traditional route up Ashbury to Haight, and then on to Golden Gate Park, where the police escort dispersed. Vic Sadot heroically sang almost the whole way. The public gave us thumbs up, took photos, and were supportive of the march. Those of us who weren’t carrying banners, signs, and the sound equipment passed out flyers and deception dollars.
8th Annual 9/11 Truth March down Haight Street, September 12, 2009
At the Power to the Peaceful Festival, 2009
ae911Truth.org booth at the Power to the Peaceful FestivalWhen we reached Speedway Meadows, 60,000 people were already in the park. We paraded right up to the stage, circling the crowd. On cue the speaker spoke out on behalf of truth. Cynthia McKinney also spoke during the festival. Our booths (ae911truth.org and Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance) and our presence were very visible, and we were one of the most popular of the activist groups booths.
Media Coverage of the events (so far):
No Lies Radio-
Archives of the live coverage of the speakers- noliesradio.org/archives/5358
KPFA -
Bonnie Faulkner interviews Eric Nadler on Guns and Butter- www.kpfa.org/guns-and-butter-anthrax-wars-investigative-journalist-author-and-filmmaker-eric-nadler
SF Gate-
www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/inoakland/author?blogid=123&auth=40
OaklandNorth.net-
Truthers converge on Grand Lake Theaterwww.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/08/27/MVPN199QQT.DTL
Films about 9/11oaklandnorth.net/2009/09/09/911-film-festival-brings-truthers-to-grand-lake
9/11 Film Festival brings truthers to Grand Lake Theateroaklandnorth.net/2009/09/10/up-close-with-moviegoers-filmmaker-at-911-film-festival
Up Close with moviegoers, filmmaker at 9/11 film festivalEast Bay Express-
www.eastbayexpress.com/events/5th_annual_9_11_film_festival/Event?oid=1181380
Critic's Choice- 5th Annual 9/11 Film Festivalwww.eastbayexpress.com/artsculture/an_inside_job/Content?oid=1194797
An Inside Job
Members of the 9/11 "Truth" movement are typically disparaged as crackpots. In fact, they're actually wonks.San Francisco Bay Guardian-
www.sfbg.com/entry.php?entry_id=9107
Alerts- 9/11 Film Festivalwww.sfbg.com/blogs/politics/2009/09/remembering_and_forgetting_911.html
Remembering -- and forgetting -- 9/11Breakthrough Coverage-
Silicon Valley Metro Cover Story-
Santa Barbara Independent Cover Story-
The hit pieces-
SF Weekly-
http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2009/08/9-11_truther_film_festival_bro.php
9/11 Film Festival Program Notes-
9/11 Truther Film Festival Brought To You By ... The San Francisco Bay Guardian?blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/last_night
Movie Night With the 9/11 Truthers -- Conspiracy Theories, Bad Music, and, Hey! Free Popcorn!blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2009/09/versus_whos_crazier_--_birther.php
Versus: Who's Crazier -- Birthers or Truthers?About the 5th Annual 9/11 Film Festival
The Film Festival originally evolved from a generous gift – the donation of the use of the Grand Lake Theater by Allen Michaan, a gracious patron of worthy causes. Our first film festival here at the Grand Lake coincided with another film festival we organized with Veterans for Peace in San Francisco. Bonnie Faulkner and Project Censored helped us with the film festival in Oakland that first year. The festivals could not have taken place without the support of many groups, filmmakers, speakers, and volunteers. We have featured narrative films, a film noire, music, comedy, a range of documentaries including those with subtitles (and some that have been dubbed by our talented local filmmaker Ken Jenkins). We could not show all the films that have been produced since last year, because some are very long, and there are so many of them. This year, we wish to draw attention and support to the work of Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth, and NYCCAN, in addition to the issues that the films raise and that we are learning about each day.
We are very glad to open the festival this year with an excerpt from Rachel Maguire’s film “Metal of Honor,” which gives the iron workers who built the World Trade Center and first responded to the crisis an opportunity to share their stories. Mike Daly, an iron worker from New York, will also speak and draw attention to the plight of those heroes whose health has suffered from their exposure to the toxic dust at ground zero.
Dylan Avery, whose “Loose Change” series has drawn world attention and the participation of many youth to the Truth movement, created the Avery Foundation this year to benefit the first responders and victims of 9/11 as well as all their families, who have been denied assistance by the state and federal governments.
The first responders were on-scene as soon as the attacks took place, and after the buildings fell they worked from sunrise to sunset, day in and day out, looking for survivors and helping to begin the process of rebuilding. Many are now sick and dying due to respiratory illnesses caused by exposure to airborne particulates at ground zero. To date, no bills have been signed into law by our government that provide them and their families with the necessary medical treatment they deserve.
The FealGood Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by John Feal, also strives to spread awareness and educate the public about the catastrophic health effects for 9/11 first responders, as well as to assist with the great financial burdens placed upon first responders in addition to their other injuries. John Feal created a special online wall to remember the heroes who have passed on due to health problems contracted directly as a result of 9/11. It is difficult to find exact records, but John estimates that over 800 first responders have died since 9/11/01.
About Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance-
The Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance held its first meeting in December 2002, and is the oldest locally based 9/11 truth group, founded by activists who organized the first street actions to demand a Congressional investigation into 9/11. Our mission statement is as follows:
Our mission is to seek and disseminate truths about the terrible crimes committed on September 11, 2001, exposing gaps and deceptions in the official story. Our goal is to inspire more eyewitness revelations, truthful media coverage, and a movement that will bring the responsible criminals to justice and eliminate governmental and corporate policies that enable criminal elements to commit such acts.
In addition to organizing events, rallies, marches, and conferences; and producing radio shows, television shows, films, books, printed materials, art, banners, and websites; the group has worked cooperatively locally, nationally and internationally to deepen our understanding of the events of 9/11, to raise consciousness, to demand accountability, and to expose the history and mechanics of false flag operations.
Members of the Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance have also created or co-created their own organizations and websites, the goals of which are aligned with our own, including the following: Jim Hoffman (www.wtc7.net), Don Paul (www.wireonfire.com/donpaul/), Gabriel Day (www.911truth.org), hummux (www.911tv.org), Cosmos (www.truthaction.org), Ken Jenkins (Marin Film Group for 9/11 Truth), Allan Rees (www.noliesradio.org), Richard Gage, AIA (www.ae911truth.org), and Carol Brouillet (www.911truthandcookies.org). The group website (which is in need of a major overhaul) is-
sf911truth.org We currently meet at the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists meeting room, 1924 Cedar (at Bonita), on the third Thursday of the month, from 7 to 10 pm. We are an all-volunteer organization and vote on major and financial decisions at the meetings, which are open to the public and those who wish to join us.
We have organized and/or participated in major 9/11 Truth, media reform, and anti-war conferences, in addition to organizing many smaller rallies, film showings, and events in the communities where we live. We produce and distribute materials to empower others, cooperatively sharing and swapping them with 9/11 Truth groups in and outside of the US. We have funded those who are willing to do the critical work involved in 9/11 Truth. What we can do is limited only by our imagination and physical constraints. We usually don’t run out of ideas, but are limited by the numbers of hours in the day
About the “Captive Fund” scandal
Congress created the “September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001” for surviving victims and for families of those killed in the attacks. The fund eventually disbursed over $7 billion, tax-free, to approximately 5,400 people. A different method was devised for persons harmed in the rescue and recovery efforts.
Congress authorized $1 billion to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) “to establish a captive insurance company, or other appropriate insurance mechanism, to handle claims arising from debris removal at the World Trade Center site.” Congress acted because New York City was unable to find private insurers willing to provide adequate coverage, due to known hazards, such as asbestos-laden dust, pulverized concrete, and glass fibers.
The WTC Captive Insurance Company [Captive] was established in July 2004 by agreements among FEMA, New York State and New York City with $1 billion to insure New York City and its private recovery-work contractors.
By mid-2006 with seriously injured workers still uncompensated, U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler requested that the Captive’s “possible mishandling of claims” be investigated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), under which FEMA had been subsumed.
The DHS Inspector General reported in June 2008 that:
• Every claim for compensation had been contested in court
The DHS Inspector General found no violation of the law or of the contractual agreements, nor even any serious problem with the Captive’s conduct—indicating that the results were intended.
• 9,397 claims had been made; but only 6 claims had been settled (1,567:1) in the four years since the Captive’s inception
• No claims for respiratory or gastrointestinal injuries, nor for cancer, had been settled (all 6 settled claims had been for cuts or fractures)
• Only $320,936 (total) had been paid to claimants
• The Captive had expended $132,497,099 for administration, legal services, etc.—that is, for each $1 paid to an injured person, $412 in expenses were incurred(In Congress now, under the leadership of the New York Congressional and Senate delegations, remedial legislation, known as HR 847 and S 1334, is proceeding to vote. This legislation is fully endorsed by the New York City Central Labor Council and the New York State Building and Construction Trades Council. Motions to endorse and support HR 847 and S 1334 are being proposed to local Bay Area unions in support of first responders and the workers at ground zero.)
This year's 8th Annual 9/11 Truth Rally/March Website
(Here's the report on last year's 7th Annual 9-11 Truth Rally/March.)
The 2009 9/11 Film Festival was supported by 911Truth.org, Modern Times Bookstore, City Lights Bookstore, KPFA, Project Censored, Media Freedom Foundation, The Green Party of Alameda County , San Francisco Bay Guardian, East Bay Express, San Francisco Bay View - National Black Newspaper, The Green Party of Santa Clara County, Peace Resource Project and the Grand Lake Theater.
Photos and report of the 2008 4th Annual 9/11 Film Festival
and here- The Final Program for the 4th Annual 9/11 Film Festival
Donate to the Northern California 9-11 Truth Alliance Return to Questioning the War Against Terrorism
