Take Back The Memorial
Encyclopedia
Take Back The Memorial is an organization which advocates keeping the memorial site of the World Trade Center
in New York City
focused on the memory of the victims who died there in the attacks of September 11, 2001. In 2005, the group was part of a successful effort to cancel the International Freedom Center
as part of the World Trade Center Memorial
.
The group was started by blogger Robert Shurbet and inspired by Debra Burlingame, sister of Charles "Chic" Burlingame III
, captain of American Airlines Flight 77
which was crashed into the Pentagon
. TBTM's mission is to monitor and to protest distractions of the proposed World Trade Center and 9/11 memorials from the events of that particular place and time.
. The group argued that the proposed historical exhibits, including some critical of previous American policies, could have been viewed by visitors as justification for the attacks. IFC backers defended the historical exhibits on the basis of what it called balance. TBTM believed that the memorial should not include any precursor events to the attacks. Burlingame wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal entitled The Great Ground-Zero Heist advocating this.
On September 28, 2005 Governor
George Pataki
ended plans to include the IFC at the World Trade Center site.
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
focused on the memory of the victims who died there in the attacks of September 11, 2001. In 2005, the group was part of a successful effort to cancel the International Freedom Center
International Freedom Center
The International Freedom Center was a proposed museum to be located adjacent to the site of Ground Zero at the former World Trade Center in New York City, USA...
as part of the World Trade Center Memorial
World Trade Center Memorial
- Fundraising :The Foundation has fundraising responsibilities because of the tasks assigned to it by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation...
.
The group was started by blogger Robert Shurbet and inspired by Debra Burlingame, sister of Charles "Chic" Burlingame III
Charles Burlingame
Charles Frank "Chic" Burlingame III was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, the aircraft that was crashed by terrorists into the Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attacks....
, captain of American Airlines Flight 77
American Airlines Flight 77
American Airlines Flight 77 was American Airlines' daily scheduled morning transcontinental flight, from Washington Dulles International Airport, in Dulles, Virginia to Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California...
which was crashed into the Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
. TBTM's mission is to monitor and to protest distractions of the proposed World Trade Center and 9/11 memorials from the events of that particular place and time.
2005 Protest of the International Freedom Center
Take Back the Memorial protested the placement of the International Freedom Center (IFC) at the World Trade Center siteWorld Trade Center site
The World Trade Center site , also known as "Ground Zero" after the September 11 attacks, sits on in Lower Manhattan in New York City...
. The group argued that the proposed historical exhibits, including some critical of previous American policies, could have been viewed by visitors as justification for the attacks. IFC backers defended the historical exhibits on the basis of what it called balance. TBTM believed that the memorial should not include any precursor events to the attacks. Burlingame wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal entitled The Great Ground-Zero Heist advocating this.
On September 28, 2005 Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
George Pataki
George Pataki
George Elmer Pataki is an American politician who was the 53rd Governor of New York. A member of the Republican Party, Pataki served three consecutive four-year terms from January 1, 1995 until December 31, 2006.- Early life :...
ended plans to include the IFC at the World Trade Center site.
2007 Format of the names listed in the memorial
In 2007 when the proposed format of the names of the victims was made public, Take Back the Memorial along with the unions of the uniformed services of New York City objected. They seek to have the memorial list the name, age, and employer, and if relevant, the rank and assignment of the victim.Other 9/11 memorials
- Flight 93 National MemorialFlight 93 National MemorialThe Flight 93 National Memorial is located at the site of the crash of United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked in the September 11 attacks, in Stonycreek Township, Pennsylvania, about north of Shanksville, and southeast of Pittsburgh. The memorial was made to honor the passengers of Flight...
, Shanksville, PennsylvaniaShanksville, PennsylvaniaShanksville is a borough in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States, with a population of 245, as of the 2000 census. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area and is approximately 60 miles southeast from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
(under development) - Pentagon MemorialPentagon MemorialThe Pentagon Memorial, located just southwest of The Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, is a permanent outdoor memorial to the 184 men and women who lost their lives as victims of the attack, killed both in the building and on American Airlines Flight 77 in the September 11, 2001...
, PentagonThe PentagonThe Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
(under development)