AFSCME Statement on the Death of Osama Bin Laden

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, May 2, 2011
Contact: Gregory King, 202-429-1145

AFSCME Pres. Gerald W. McEntee issued the following statement on the death of Osama Bin Laden:

“AFSCME members welcome President Obama’s announcement that on his orders Osama Bin Laden has been killed. Our members were on the frontlines on September 11, 2001. We’ve always been on the frontlines.

“We continue to mourn our brothers and sisters who lost their lives on that fateful day, members such as Father Mychal Judge, a chaplain to the fire department who was the first identified victim at the World Trade Center, and Carlos Lillo and Ricardo Quinn, emergency medical technicians who were members of AFSCME District Council 37, Local 2507. Our brothers and sisters from CSEA lost five members from the Department of Taxation and Finance who worked in the twin towers: Yvette Anderson, Florence Cohen, Harry Goody, Marian Hrycak and Dorothy Temple. These eight workers were engaged in the unselfish and professional work of public servants. They were taken from us too soon.

“In the years since 2001, AFSCME members and many of our family members have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan to secure freedom and save lives. At the same time, scores of emergency medical technicians, paramedics and emergency workers, who were exposed to a toxic mix of dust and fumes on September 11, have developed a wide range of medical problems, including lung cancer and respiratory diseases. Many of these valiant rescuers have died.

“At this historic moment when a vicious murderer has been found and justice has been done, our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to the families of our members who served and died, and those who continue to suffer and sacrifice. We mourn those we lost and celebrate those who showed such courage and commitment during those terrible days nearly a decade ago. They were heroes. We will never forget them.”

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AFSCME’s 1.6 million members provide the vital services that make America happen. With members in hundreds of different occupations — from nurses to corrections officers, childcare providers to sanitation workers — AFSCME advocates for fairness in the workplace, excellence in public services and prosperity and opportunity for all working families.