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NY lawmakers push to make 9/11 a national holiday

Rep. Anthony D'Esposito (R-NY) urges passage of a bill to make 9/11 a federal holiday at the 9/11 memorial at Point Lookout.
Desiree D'Iorio
/
WSHU
Rep. Anthony D'Esposito (R-NY) urges passage of a bill to make 9/11 a federal holiday at the 9/11 memorial at Point Lookout.

Lawmakers on Long Island are pushing a bill to make September 11th a federal holiday as the U.S. marks 23 years since the terror attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C.

The September 11th Day of Remembrance Act would close schools, post offices and other government buildings to honor those who died in the attacks.

Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY) said the phrase “never forget” is common this time of year, but the bill he co-sponsored would make that sentiment real. 

“People do forget, and people are forgetting," he said at a news conference at the 9/11 memorial in Point Lookout. "And when you talk to children who are now graduating high school, who weren't even alive on September 11th, unfortunately, in some curriculums throughout not only Long Island but this country, they're not even teaching about 9/11.”

He said the bill has bipartisan support in Congress and the support of families who have lost loved ones.

Richard Beckwith, whose father was the retired New York City firefighter who stood next to then-president George W. Bush as he gave a speech from the rubble of the Twin Towers, also voiced his support.

“The memory of that spirit of national unity that we all felt following 9/11 seems to be fading," Beckwith said. "Yet it is vital that future generations of Americans be instructed on what happened during those dark days.”

Almost 3,000 people died during the attacks, including several hundred Long Islanders and Connecticut residents. Thousands more have died since then from toxic exposure-related illnesses.

Desiree D'Iorio serves as the Long Island Bureau Chief for WSHU.