Twenty-four years ago, on a bright and clear September morning, the unimaginable happened just a few blocks away from New York Law School (NYLS). Today, we commemorate the tragedy that shook the world and reshaped New York City and the nation. The grief, courage, and resilience shown by New Yorkers that day and in the subsequent weeks fueled a national determination to recover and rebuild in the face of the most difficult challenges.
Today we remember the members of our community tragically killed in the September 11 attacks: Craig Lilore ’98, Weirong Lin ’98, Joseph Lostrangio ’78, and Richard Madden ’92—all of whom were working in offices in the World Trade Center. And many in the community suffered the loss of family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors among the nearly 3,000 lives lost that day. The NYLS community continues to mourn these losses and honor their memories today.
Amidst the tragedy, however, stood the brave and selfless acts of the first responders who rushed into the danger to save lives. Among them were NYLS alumni. Kevin Cunnane ’04, a fire marshal, arrived on the scene right as the second tower came down. James Brown ’04 and James Kennelly ’02 were firefighters in the New York Fire Department and soon joined thousands of rescue workers who came to help. NYLS Professor Kirk Burkhalter ’04, an NYPD Detective and Evening Division student at the time, worked nonstop, first responding to the scene and working on recovery, followed by counter-terrorism investigations to protect the City from further attacks. Professor Burkhalter recounted his experiences in a TV interview and also spoke about them four years ago on the 20th anniversary of the attacks.
After the attacks, the NYLS community authored a collective memoir titled Eight Blocks Away. We encourage everyone to read the deeply personal reflections from many members of the law school community.
As we do every year on this day, we never forget and honor the bravery and resilience of New York City, the nation, and our law school community.
During the next year, New York Law School will take the opportunity to mark the upcoming 25th anniversary of the attacks by hosting several programs that remember the City’s and NYLS’s experience and losses as a result of these tragic events.