00:00These people had to fight, sick and dying, for years.
00:06And I'm not saying that the information may have changed the outcomes, unfortunately, for their families.
00:11But I guarantee you, it would not have been the struggle that it was to get people to recognize that
00:20what they all knew,
00:22and what we all knew who live in downtown Manhattan, is that there was poison in the air and on
00:30the ground and in the windowsills and in your air conditioners
00:35and covering your pets and your clothes, and it stayed there for months.
00:43Everyone knew.
00:44The documents show the city knew the air was toxic, even though Mayors Giuliani and Bloomberg said it was safe.
00:50These are documents that show what the city knew about the toxic air around Ground Zero,
00:55when they knew it, and how they acted to limit liability.
00:59They contain details about DEP's response.
01:03They show how asbestos was found nearly everywhere that inspectors tested.
01:07And they will help New Yorkers access the health care they need.
01:11The 170,000 pages posted today are only the first release.
01:16More will be shared over the next 12 months.
01:18Every document on this portal will be accessible to every New Yorker free of charge.
01:23Mayor Mamdani hoping these documents might make some rethink where they were at the time and apply for 9-11
01:30health care.
01:31People got sick because the leaders they trusted lied and told them they were safe to breathe in toxic air.
01:39And then when they began to contend with the symptoms of the illnesses that followed,
01:43the government that had not hesitated to send them into harm's way was nowhere to be found.
01:49The documents include the Harding memo showing the city knew it was opening itself up to legal trouble
01:54by telling residents it was safe to return to lower Manhattan.
01:57And Corporation Counsel Steve Banks says those 68 boxes of DEP documents.
02:03You hear every morning on Wynn's AM radio about the 68 boxes.
02:08New Yorkers have a right to know what is in those boxes.
02:11And today we are giving New Yorkers access to see what is in those boxes.
02:15Mayor Mamdani's message to the people who didn't stop fighting for transparency.
02:20You were right to push.
02:21You were right to demand.
02:23And that the city is finally catching up to that.
