WTC Records Folder 0123 Clippings label, Sept 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

10/01/2001 15:02 FAX 2123370603 THOMAS PHIFER 10007/007

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> to enter there too) I am confronted with over- zealous Guardsman and > young cops, and NOBODY can read! I show them the letter I'm carrying > and they want to wave it off as if it's a scam. They bar my way. I > fight like crazy and of course they don't want to be challenged-they > are Authority! Finally I was taken under the wing of a bunch of > detectives from the bomb and rescue squad-just by chance, plus the > fascination the old wooden camera carries. They suggested that we got > someone in the Governors' office to put out a bulletin to all sectors > that a photographer, special to the city and this undertaking, is on > the scene and can go everywhere-I think the Governors' office must > control the National Guard. Actually a Guardsman Captain said > something similar as he escorted me out of his zone; "Let the > Governors' men tell me it's OX and then it's OK". Can we do that?

> Do you have any sway with that bunch? Can somebody put out an alert > that I'm doing something necessary, or can we get a special badge > that legitimizes my effort? I see now that it is truly the right > thing to be doing (and for the long term). Their resistance and > ignorance would deprive the future of any record of this-except for > the hundreds of workers who are snapping away like mad- and we need a > comprehensive, thought-out and executed survey. I know how to do this > because I did it for St.Louis (for Jim Wood the then Director and now > my friend) and because there is precedent with the work of Marville > who photographed Hausmanns public works and of course Atget at the > turn of the century and Sullivan in the Civil war and Jackson > defining the opening of the West. These are some of my heros and they > give me the motivation to pursue this. But our governing leaders are > blind to the need and the value. How do we wake them up and get the appropriate permission? Every day more of the margins are being > cleaned up and they won't let me in there, so we are losing ground.

I am building a library of images already which we can use as > ammunition if we need to, but if I continue to be limited to one side > of the pile at ground zero it won't be rich enough. And you know in 6 > months this will be cleaned up and a greensward will be in place for > awhile, and the stages of all these changes are part of the larger > story. I also plan to do a deep, portrait archive of all these > skilled workers who embody the best of American "can do".

> As you can see I'm excited and somewhat frustrated as I learn both > how exciting its potential is and how uncertain my legitimacy appears. >

> Let me know if you have any ideas about this as I'm going back in > tomorrow-the bomb guys are taking me on their tour of buildings.

> With gratitude,

> Joel

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