Old Navy T-shirt

Special tribute t-shirt offered by Old Navy. 

Civilian Justice Comic: 9-11 Tribute Book

Interesting 9-11 tribute comic book.  As the front page states, "We Do Not Attack...We Defend!"  The "superhero" appears on the front page, as well as Bin Laden.  Also, the comic indicates "a % of profits will be donated to the relief funds."  You have to wonder if there was any profits, let alone donation made (just me being skeptical). 

Cantor Fitzgerald Commemorative WTC Steel

Cantor Fitzgerald and bgc commemorative box with world trade center steel.  This special tribute was given to employees.  I'm not exactly sure how many were created or distributed, but this is a striking 9/11 example from corporate America.  The steel cube weighs about one pound.  

Cantor Fitzgerald's corporate headquarters and New York City office,[7][8] on the 101st-105th floors of One World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan (2-6 floors above the impact zone of a hijacked airliner), were destroyed during the September 11, 2001 attacks. Seconds after Cantor's building was struck by the plane, a Goldman Sachs server issued an alert saying that its trading system had gone offline because it wasn't able to connect with a Cantor server.[9][10][11] Cantor Fitzgerald lost over two-thirds of its workforce, considerably more than any of the other World Trade Center tenants or the New York City Police Department and New York City Fire Department. CEO and chairman Howard Lutnick, whose brother was among those killed, vowed to keep the company alive, and the company was able to bring its trading markets back online within a week. On September 19, Cantor Fitzgerald made a pledge to distribute 25 percent of the firm's profits for the next five years, and committed to paying for ten years of health care, for the benefit of the families of its 658 former Cantor Fitzgerald, eSpeed, and TradeSpark employees (profits which would otherwise have been distributed to the Cantor Fitzgerald partners).[12] In 2006, the company completed its promise, having paid a total of $180 million[12] (and an additional $17 million from a relief fund run by Lutnick's sister, Edie).[13]

Before the attacks, Cantor handled about one-quarter of the daily transactions in the multi-trillion dollar treasury security market. Cantor has since rebuilt its infrastructure, thanks in part to the efforts of its London office,[14] and now has its headquarters in midtown Manhattan. The company's effort to regain its footing is the subject of Tom Barbash's 2003 book On Top of the World: Cantor Fitzgerald, Howard Lutnick, and 9/11: A Story of Loss and Renewal.

Yankees Magazine 9/11 Tribute

Yankees Magazine (Oct 2001) issue featured a special tribute to 9/11.

FDNY Rescue Heroes Toy

Billy Blazes FDNY Rescue Heroes special tribute and figure.  This toy is branded Fire Department of NY, and even features a letter on the package from the head of FDNY.  The letter speaks about the partnership between Toys R Us and FDNY, and the proceeds from the sale of this toy being donated to the FDNY's Education Fund (right on the front package too).  This toy again demonstrates the impact of 9/11 on all areas of material culture.  Furthermore, it is clear that 9/11 is the call action for purchasing/consuming this toy. This really is an amazing example, and something people will look back on in 100 years as documentation of the importance and impact of September 11th.

DC Comics Superman Tribute

In the January 02 issue of Doom Patrol, the following tribute featuring Superman was included.  The message states: "In Recognition of all who suffered September 11th and admiration of our nation's real-life heroes."

Liz Claiborne 9/11 Tribute Pin

 

Liz Claiborne patriotic tribute pin to September 11th.  Label on pin relates that "Liz Claiborne will donate 100% of our proceeds to the Twin Towers Fund."  The pin sold for $12.00.

The Donation Question:

I've raised this issue numerous times with other items from this collection: What were the actual donated proceeds to the 9/11 or in this case, the Twin Towers Fund?  Was that an actual fund?  The press and investigative reporting on the abuses of nonprofits that started up after 9/11 or implied a connection to 9/11 is warranted, but what about companies who promoted the sale of goods and merchandise tied to donations of proceeds to 9/11 victims, funds, etc?  There have never been any public accounting of these donated funds.  Were they actually donated?  It would be interesting to see what kind of accountably there is amongst the corporate sector for such sales driven by charitable motivations.  Let's label this consumer and charity mix.  Possible names: consumercharity sales; feel good consumption; or donation spending.  Have your own suggestions?  Share them here, or e-mail me.