The leader of a group representing families affected by the 9/11 terror attacks has criticized the Saudi-backed organization. LIV Golf Series for hosting the tournament in Bedminster in New Jersey this week. Terry Strada, the national president of 9/11 Families United, believes the venue is the “worst place on the planet” for the third event of the lucrative rebel tour.
On Tuesday morning, Strada will headline a news conference near Bedminster, owned by the former US president. donald trump. There, 9/11 Families United will post documents they believe prove Saudi involvement in the World Trade Center attacks. Saudi Arabia has always categorically denied complicity in 9/11. “The players need to see this and the White House needs to pay attention as well,” said Strada, whose husband Tom was among the nearly 3,000 people who died in the 2001 atrocity.
New Jersey lost nearly 750 residents on 9/11. Strada said of the golfers, including Phil Mickelson, who have converted to the LIV Series: “Everyone could have thought about how families would feel if they came to Bedminster and New Jersey. Of all the courses in the world, this is literally the worst they could hold a tournament on. It was extremely insulting and hurtful to think that, six weeks before the last anniversary, the families were not going to feel the pain of a Saudi. garter backed in your backyard.
“The families were the ones who suffered the most, but these towns also suffered. There were schools with broken-hearted children returning to the classroom. New York City can’t host a tournament, so Bedminster, New Jersey is the worst place on the planet it could be happening.”
Trump’s involvement as host of the tournament adds another layer of controversy. Last week he actively advised golfers to side with LIV against the traditional PGA Tour model. “He should know better than anyone, as a former president, the level of depravity that the kingdom is capable of,” Strada said. “He turned a blind eye when he was president. He is a New Yorker, he says he feels empathy for families but clearly he does not. If he had a sensitive bone in his body, he would understand the level of distress this causes.
“These people don’t understand how devastating 9/11 was. My husband was dismembered. We don’t know where all of his body parts landed. He has never been identified. There was a psychological cruelty that people don’t realize. These players have lightly forgotten how terrible the attacks were, but former President Trump is especially egregious in his behavior toward us. There are no words for that.”
Strada called Graeme McDowell’s public statement of a “smear campaign” against LIV “comical”.
On behalf of a body that represents more than 10,000 family members of 9/11 victims and survivors, Strada wrote a scathing letter to representatives for Mickelson and a handful of others after they pledged to LIV. There has been no response, although Mickelson has expressed his “deepest sympathy” to the families of those who lost loved ones on 9/11.
“That didn’t surprise me,” Strada said of the lack of a direct response to the letter. “It was disappointing. I don’t think they know how to react to families. They are simply bringing up Saudi talking points, left and right. They are getting more and more insulting as time goes on because they just repeat the same things. Sport washing is a very serious problem if you look at it through a serious lens.
“I can’t imagine them being completely ruthless, but actions speak louder than words and their actions scream heartless. They have done some abominable things; Shirt [worn by Pat Perez] with 100 dollar bill design. The dance and party on the LIV jet. How did you think the 9/11 families would feel about it?
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A routine defense by LIV golfers that the source of money for golf tournaments under the banner of existing tours gets little attention doesn’t cut the ice with Strada. “Business is one thing,” she said. “I may not like people doing business with the kingdom, but this is not it. It is not a business arrangement. This is intentional sportswashing to clean up their image, manipulate public opinion, and sweep the 9/11 atrocities under the rug. Golfers are willing to do this for a large sum of money.”
In response to earlier outrage from those affected by 9/11 at hosting an LIV event in Bedminster, organizers said, “These families have our deepest condolences,” adding, “While some may disagree , we believe that golf is a force for good throughout the world.”