Stuyvesant High Alumni Get OK To Hold 9/11 Vigil
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Stuyvesant High School alumni have received permission to hold a vigil commemorating the 10th anniversary of Sept. 11 at the Lower Manhattan school.
More than 100 graduates who were students at the school during the terrorist attacks plan to attend. Many of them watched the tragedy unfold from their school.
LINK: Videos of the 9/11 attacks
They've been issued a permit for a two-hour event on Sunday by Battery Park City Authority Chairman William Thompson Jr. The school is on Battery Park City property.
"Many of my classmates, as they were walking to school, actually saw the plane hit the World Trade Center," said Jukay Hsu, who was a senior at Stuyvesant just four blocks from the Twin Towers.
Ten years later, along with dozens of his classmates, Hsu wanted to return to his alma mater, "to sort of reflect on our experiences these past 10 years," he told WCBS 880's Alex Silverman.
Their request was initially rejected by city and school officials for security reasons. Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer interceded on their behalf.
"His first reaction, unfortunately, was that he doesn't want to relive that day," Hsu said about the school's principal. "He didn't understand why we would."
"He mentioned possible vandalism, threats to school property," Hsu said.
The Department of Education said another group has a permit for the auditorium that day, but the school is 10 stories tall with plenty of other space, according to Hsu.
"People feel really strongly about it and they feel very emotional about this and they really want to see something occur," Hsu said.
Do you agree with the decision to let the alumni hold vigil? Sound off in our comments section below…
(TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
