Dear NYLS Community Members,
I hope this message finds you safe and well amid the challenges we are all facing.
Twenty years ago today, our lives as Americans, New Yorkers, and NYLS community members were changed forever by the deadly attacks on the World Trade Center. 2,977 people were killed that terrible day, including four NYLS alumni working at the World Trade Center, and family members and friends of the NYLS community. We will forget none of them and we mourn them all. Others of us were part of the critical rescue and recovery operations. Many of us have suffered, and some have died, from resulting long-term health effects. And, all of us have been affected by the continuing threats that have marked an era of instability, fear, and suffering that began that day.
For those who lived through that unforgettable day, I know today will be one of deep reflection and remembrance. For those too young to remember, I hope that the difficult history of the past two decades serves as a source of understanding and inspiration. Like we did that day, New York Law School stands just blocks from the World Trade Center. Instead of two towers, a new tower — One World Trade Center — stands. We can see it each day when we walk into NYLS, and from our roof deck. Many of our alumni and students work there, and it must always serve as a reminder not only of our resilience, but of our mission as lawyers — in a nation created through the work, determination, and love of people from every corner of the earth — that must always be dedicated to the rule of law and equal justice.
If you would like to read more about NYLS and the attacks on the World Trade Center, please read the article here. If you would like to view yesterday’s CityLaw Breakfast with Michael Arad, the architect of the 9/11 Memorial, please watch the video here.
I wish you peace and health.
Dean Crowell