1010 WINS 9/11 Series: Rudy Giuliani Looks Back
NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani says there isn't a day that goes by that he doesn't think about the events of Sept. 11, 2001.
His office is filled with pictures of 9/11 families -- friends who Giuliani met through tragedy. Many of these friendships are even stronger 10 years after the terror attacks.
"It reminds you of the lingering, remaining pain of Sept. 11," Giuliani said. "These children that I know have grown up without a father, in most cases. You can never replace that."
Glenn Schuck Interviews Rudy Giuliani: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Giuliani said he is in awe of how strong the families have been, many days helping him get through his bad memories of that terrible day. His message to them is that their loved ones will never be forgotten.
"They contributed tremendous strength to America getting through the worst attack in our history because of their bravery," Giuliani says. "There were so many heroes. We know about the firefighters, police officers and the rescue workers, but we don't know about all the hidden heroes who helped save each other and protect each other."
As the nation readies to pay tribute to the victims, Giuliani believes 9/11 should not yet be considered history.
"Pearl Harbor or Gettysburg is part of our history. Those conflicts are over, they're part of the history books. We honor the people that died but there's no longer a present issue for us," he says. "Sept. 11 is still going on, the reasons we were attacked still exist. When we reach the 10th anniversary of Sept. 11 and go through it let's not think that this is over."
This year, Giuliani will take part in the ceremony that opens the 9/11 Memorial. He recently took a preview tour of the site and says "going back there was very moving."
He accepts that ground zero is and will be a tourist attraction.
"People want to see it, people want to understand it better and people want to pay respects to the people who died there," Giuliani said. "I think largely that's the kind of tourist attraction it will be."
Though he says the memorial was brilliantly done, Giuliani would've preferred to protect the hallowed ground and keep office buildings out of the area.
"Commercial buildings can be built somewhere else, I don't think they have to be built there," Giuliani said. "By putting commercial buildings there you crowd the space too much. You don't get the sense of enormity, how large this was."
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