To the Struggle Against World Terrorism

Coordinates: 40°39′49.3″N 74°4′8.7″W / 40.663694°N 74.069083°W / 40.663694; -74.069083

To the Struggle Against World Terrorism (also known as the Tear of Grief and the Tear Drop Memorial) is a 10–story sculpture by Zurab Tsereteli that was given to the United States as an official gift of the Russian government as a memorial to the victims of the September 11 attacks in 2001 and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.[1] It stands at the end of the former Military Ocean Terminal in Bayonne, New Jersey. Groundbreaking was done on September 16, 2005, in a ceremony attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin,[2] and was dedicated on September 11, 2006, in a ceremony attended by former U.S. President Bill Clinton.[1][3]

Design

The sculpture is composed of a 100-foot (30 m) bronze-clad tower split with a jagged opening in the middle in which hangs a large nickel-surfaced teardrop,[4][5] 40 feet (12 m) high.[1][6] The eleven sides of the monument's base bear granite name plates, on which are etched the names of those who died in the September 11 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.[7] However, like some other 9/11 memorials, the dedication was based on an outdated compilation and contains about forty people who were removed from later victim listings.[8]

Tsereteli did not disclose the cost of the sculpture except to say that he paid for labor and materials. A lawyer for the sculptor released the cost at about $12 million.[9] Tsereteli said metals for the sculpture were obtained "From a military factory that did airplanes. In Dzerzhinsk. A secret city."[10]

It was initially given to the local government of Jersey City, but was rejected.[11] It was then relocated to its present placement in Bayonne.[8] In August 2010 the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced it had plans to build a container facility on the location and the monument would most likely have to be moved.[9] However, these plans have not been confirmed by the Port Authority. Robert "Captain Bob" Terzi, a Bayonne taxi driver started an online petition to prevent the relocation.[9]

Reaction to the monument has been mixed. It was listed as one of the world's ugliest statues by Foreign Policy magazine,[12] while The New Yorker said that it looked like "a giant tea biscuit" from a distance.[10] Pro Arts Jersey City called it "an insensitive, self-aggrandizing piece of pompousness by one of the world's blatant self-promoters".[4] Reactions from the general public have described it as "pretty impressive" and a "breathtakingly beautiful creation".[9]

In September 2011, a 4-foot (1.2 m) section of steel from the World Trade Center was placed adjacent to the sculpture.[13]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "The Memorial at Harbor View Park" (PDF). Bayonne Local Redevelopment Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 22, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Groundbreaking Ceremony: September 16, 2005". Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  3. ↑ "The Unveiling of a New World Monument" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on February 22, 2012. Retrieved March 17, 2009.
  4. 1 2 "Our Towns; A Jersey City Teardrop for 9/11, Or a 10-Story Embarrassment?". The New York Times. June 30, 2004. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  5. ↑ "To the Struggle Against World Terrorism, A Monument Created by Zurab Tsereteli as a gift to the American people.". Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Tsereteli's Official Biography". Tsereteli's official webpage. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012.
  7. ↑ "To the Struggle Against World Terrorism: A History". Archived from the original on August 18, 2009.
  8. 1 2 "9/11 Memorial in New Jersey Honors 40 People Too Many". The New York Times. Associated Press. September 10, 2006. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Mike Morley (October 2011). "White Elephants". Irish American News. Archived from the original on November 23, 2011.
  10. 1 2 Finnegan, William (June 25, 2007). "On the Waterfront: Monument". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on July 16, 2015. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
  11. ↑ Miller, Jonathan (January 30, 2005). "Monument In Search Of a Home". The New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
  12. ↑ Keating, Joshua (April 5, 2010). "The World's Ugliest Statues". Archived from the original on January 6, 2011.
  13. ↑ Hack, Charles (August 31, 2011). "Motorcyclists to escort piece of World Trade Center steel to Bayonne memorial site on Sept. 7". The Jersey Journal. Archived from the original on October 27, 2014.
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