Blocks Away 9-11

---

Velvet S. McNeil an award-winning photojournalist for the Detroit News, The New York native was in Harlem on September 9, 2001 to attend and photograph her sister’s wedding, She was scheduled to fly home to Detroit on the following Tuesday, September 11. On that morning, her new brother-in-law awakened her and said, “You can’t go home today.” She walked into the living room and turned toward the television just in time to see live images of the second plane flying into the south tower of the World Trade Center. Ms. McNeil knew she had to go downtown to document the catastrophic event, She got within a couple of blocks of the rubble and was able to capture on film the collapse of Building No. 7 in the World Trade Center Complex. By the end of the day, she was hanging out blankets and coffee to the firefighters who were risking their lives, For three days, Ms., McNeil made compelling images of the devastation at Ground Zero. Join her in commemorating the day that changed life for most Americans, who were risking their lives.