DAVID T. JOHNSON, MINISTER

Speeches & Remarks

21 April 2005
Chargé d'Affaires a.i. David T. Johnson Thanks Creators and Supporters of the British Memorial Garden

Good evening. It is a pleasure to welcome you to the American Embassy.

If you had the opportunity to stroll through Grosvenor Square before coming here, as I did, then you have already seen firsthand the work of the British Memorial Garden Trust and you can more fully appreciate the reason we are gathered here this evening.

My colleagues and I at the American Embassy have been honored to have this work of art in Grosvenor Square, if only for a few weeks. The stones that depict Britain are beautifully carved. The artist, Simon Verity, said he carved this work from the hardest stones he could find, because he wanted to make it last forever. With his tremendous effort, Simon's art recognizes the losses we suffered together, but it also symbolizes the enduring friendship between America and Great Britain. We are here tonight not just to remember our losses but also to celebrate that friendship. This Memorial is not a remembrance created by governments. The American people and the British people, as private citizens, banded together in shared commemoration of life and of loss.

The stones in Grosvenor Square have been on display for the past three weeks. Shortly after they were set down, I walked through the square one morning to take a look at Simon's handiwork. What struck me most, aside from the elegance of the sculpture, was the thought that this piece of Britain would be taken permanently to lower Manhattan. These stones will sit quietly amid the whirl of New York City - a lasting testimony to what happened on September 11, 2001, and how it affected all of us, in America, in Great Britain, and around the world.

I want to thank Camilla Hellman and all who have worked so hard to bring this memorial to pass. And I want to thank you for supporting their project with your presence here tonight.

This memorial helps us to remember a truly horrific day that binds us through a common, tragic experience. But it is not a monument to defeat, to despair or to victimhood.

It is instead a monument to our response together after suffering. It is a tribute to the shared values and traditions that make our nations' partnership unique. And it is a memorial to the special place that the British people have in the hearts of all Americans. For if you look at the Hanover Square Monument from above, it's not just a memorial to the victims of 9/11, but a permanent depiction of the very shape of the British Isles. A map of your country in the heart of New York. We are grateful to the donors for giving us this eternal reminder of the ties that bind our two nations together.

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