Lasting Tribute

Imagine that on the morning of September 11, 2001, the city of New York was blanketed by a thick fog. Imagine that two planes crashed into the World Trade Center, the Twin Towers caught fire, and eventually collapsed.Surely, it would have been fitting under such circumstances to construct a memorial to the victims of that tragedy. There would have been a need to recognize the kindness of those who calmly helped their fellow workers, the courage of the firefighters who braved the inferno to save others, and the countless acts of heroism of those who died and those who survived.But September 11 was no random tragedy. It was a deliberate attack on the United States that turned ground zero into a battlefield in a terrorist war that is being waged against the entire free world. Therefore, one would think that a cultural center on the site of that battlefield would seek not only to memorialize the specific victims of that horrific day, but also to place the attack in the context of the wider war that is being waged.To me, the battle lines in this war are clear. On one side stand those who have no regard for human life, who view individuals merely as tools to advance a wicked ideology, and who are prepared to use any means to achieve their goals. On the other side are those who hold human life sacred, who see human rights as essential, and who are not prepared to sacrifice life and liberty on any altar.Equally clear to me are the weapons that are being employed in this war. For those who attacked America, terrorism and the blackmail that accompanies it are the most potent weapons. For America, the very democratic values that have been targeted are both a shield and a sword, since it is the advance of those values that will ultimately secure America.While the war on terror features new protagonists, it is a war that has been fought before. It is a war between liberty and tyranny, between freedom and fear, between good and evil.Because I see the war on terror in these terms, a cultural center at ground zero dedicated to the advance of freedom seems particularly appropriate. By demonstrating liberty’s march and triumph both in America and around the world, such a cultural center could show how the weapon of freedom, honed over time by courageous individuals and nations, can be used to transform our world.While the benefits of a cultural center dedicated to freedom are obvious to me, the concerns of many that such a center could turn into a “blame America” exhibit are understandable. I have seen how the once sacred concept of human rights has been twisted beyond recognition and used to bludgeon the free world, even by those who are genuine advocates for human rights.That said, the source of this moral confusion is the failure to recognize the fundamental moral difference between free societies, where human rights can be abused but where there are means to correct those abuses, and “fear societies,” which by their very nature never respect human rights. By reconnecting the concept of human rights to the idea of a free society, a freedom center might go a long way toward injecting some moral clarity back into the public discourse.Will those charged with building the International Freedom Center successfully accomplish this goal? After meeting several times and discussing these issues with Tom Bernstein and the rest of his team, I am confident that they will.Ultimately, America will win the war on terror with the courage of its people and with the power of its ideals.I am confident that the center planned for ground zero will pay a lasting tribute to both, doing justice not only to the victims of 9/11, but also inspiring all those who cherish liberty to recognize the power of freedom to change our world.

Lasting Tribute

Lasting Tribute

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