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HUMAN FREEDOMS.
>> A PARK AND A MEMORIAL
INSPIRED BY ONE OF THE MOST
STIRRING SPEECHES --
>> FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND
EXPRESSION.
>> THERE'S A FORCE TO IT AND A
STRENGTH TO IT.
>> -- FROM ONE OF OUR GREATEST
PRESIDENTS.
>> FREEDOM OF EVERY PERSON WHO
WORSHIPS GOD IN HIS OWN WAY.
>> FDR SAW AMERICA'S ROLE AS
LARGER THAN IT HAD BEEN.
>> FREEDOM FROM WANT, FREEDOM
FROM FEAR.
>> AN ARCHITECTURAL WONDER THAT
ALMOST DIDN'T HAPPEN.
>> THEY WERE GOING TO DO IT.
>> FOR THE DREAMERS WHO DREAMED
IT AND THE ACTIVISTS WHO WORKED
UNDER TRYING CONDITIONS TO MAKE
IT REAL.
THE ISLAND THAT BEARS PRESIDENT
ROOSEVELT'S NAME.
THIS PROGRAM IS MADE POSSIBLE BY
CORRINA ENDOWMENT FUND, AND
VINCENT MAY AND BERNARD AND
IRENE SWARTZ.
>> SURELY IT IS FRANKLIN DELANO
ROOSEVELT.
HE WAS A NATIVE NEW YORKER WHO
SERVES AS GOVERNOR HERE.
HIS NEW DEAL PROGRAMS FINANCED
BUILDINGS, PARKS AND HIGHWAYS IN
AND AROUND THE CITY.
AND HE FOUGHT TIRELESSLY FOR THE
CREATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
RIGHT ALONG THE EAST RIVER.
TODAY AN EXTRAORDINARY MONUMENT
TO HIS LEGACY EXISTS FITTINGLY
HERE ON ROOSEVELT ISLAND.
FOUR FREEDOMS PARK IS NAMED FOR
FDR'S SOBERING 1941 SPEECH THAT
RESHAPED OUR VIEW OF AMERICA'S
ROLE IN THE WORLD.
BUT THIS PLACE IS NOT AUSTERE,
IT'S A VIBRANT PARK AND A
BREATHTAKING STRUCTURE DESIGNED
BY ONE OF THE 20th CENTURY'S
GREATEST ARCHITECTS.
THE STORY OF HOW THIS SITE WENT
FROM LAND FILL TO LANDMARK COULD
FILL A HISTORY BOOK OF ITS OWN.
A SERIES OF OBSTACLES WERE
OVERCOME THROUGH INNOVATE TIFF
DESIGN AND THE FEAR BELIEF OF
MEMORIALIZING FDR IN THE RIGHT
WAY AND IN THE RIGHT PLACE WAS
WORTH THE EFFORT.
>> PEOPLE WHO HAVE COME TO IT
WHO ARE ARCHITECTS OR STUDENTS
OF ANY BACKGROUND TALK OF IT IN
SPIRITUAL TERMS.
>> FOUR FREEDOMS PARK IS A PROUD
MEMORIAL TO FRANKLIN DELANO
ROOSEVELT, THE NEW YORK GOVERNOR
AND FOUR-TERM U.S. PRESIDENT WHO
SKILLFULLY GUIDED NEW YORK AND
THE NATION THROUGH THE WORST
DOMESTIC CRISIS AND THE WORST
FOREIGN CRISIS OF THE 20th
CENTURY.
A NEW YORK MONUMENT TO HONOR AN
ICONIC LEADER WHO LAUNCHED HIS
CAREER HERE MIGHT SEEM LIKE A
NATURAL IDEA, BUT MAKING THIS
PARK A REALITY WAS ITSELF A
MONUMENTAL TASK, REQUIRING
DECADES OF RELENTLESS ADVOCACY.
WE'LL SHOW YOU A PROJECT THAT
WAS DAUNTING EVEN TO THE CITY'S
BEST BUILDERS.
>> YOU'RE WORKING HERE ON A VERY
NARROW ISLAND.
>> YOU HAD A VERY BIG CHALLENGE.
>> THE FORCE BEHIND FOUR
FREEDOMS PARK IS A FORMER
AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED
NATIONS, BILL VANDENHEUVEL.
VANEDHEUVEL HAS BEEN PUSHING
FOR -- BUT HIS EMOTION POND TO
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT GOES BACK
MUCH FURTHER.
>> MY FATHER ON HIS SHOULDERS
TOOK ME TO THE RAILWAY STATION
TO SEE FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT
ARRIVE IN ONE OF THE TORCHLIGHT
PARADES.
>> VANDEN HEUVEL'S --
>> I IDEALIZED I'M SURE AS A
YOUNG BOY WOULD.
I BEGAN CAMPAIGNING FOR THE
ROOSEVELT TRADITION AND THE
ROOSEVELT LEGACY WHEN I WAS 10
YEARS OLD.
>> AS A BOY IN ROCHESTER, NEW
YORK, HE WAS INSPIRED BY
ROOSEVELT, A MAN WHO HAD
SURVIVED A DEVASTATING BOUT OF
POLIO AND BECOME A POPULAR TAKE
CHARGE GOVERNOR.
>> THE DEPRESSION HIT IN THE
MIDDLE OF FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT'S
GOVERNOR SHIP AND HE ALONE
DECIDED THAT THE STATE
GOVERNMENT COULD HELP PEOPLE.
>> WITH FOOD LINES ACROSS THE
STATE AND HOOVERVILLE SPRINGING
UP EVEN IN CENTRAL PARK, NEW
YORKERS NEEDED HELP.
ROOSEVELT LOWERED UTILITY RATES,
REDUCED TAXES AND CREATED A
STATE AGENCY TO AID THE
UNEMPLOYED.
WHEN HE WAS ELECTED PRESIDENT IN
1932, FDR ENACTED AN EVEN MORE
AMBITIOUS PLAN FOR THE NATION'S
ECONOMIC RECOVERY.
THE NEW DEAL PROVIDED
UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION AND
ASSISTANCE TO THE POOR, ELDERLY
AND DISABLED.
NEW DEAL PROGRAMS LIKE THE WORKS
PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION CREATED
MORE THAN 12 MILLION JOBS.
>> HE DIDN'T THINK THERE WERE
ANY PROBLEMS THAT COULDN'T BE
SOLVED, ESPECIALLY IF HE WAS IN
CHARGE.
>> THE PROBLEMS CONFRONTING
ROOSEVELT WOULD ONLY GET MORE
DAUNTING.
HITLER, ROOSEVELT'S MOST
VITRIOLIC POSSIBILITIES PREACHED
ISOLATIONISM.
>> THE WARMONGERS ARE NOT
INTERESTED IN THE WELFARE OF THE
COMMON PEOPLE.
AS MUCH AS THEY ARE INTERESTED
IN MAINTAINING THEIR
INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL CONTROL.
>> THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO
HATED THEM, LUNATICS WHO THOUGHT
HE WAS THE MOUTHPIECE FOR THE
JEWS.
PEOPLE WHO RESENTED HIS HAVING
WON A THIRD TERM, THEY THOUGHT
HE WAS LYING ABOUT EUROPE.
>> FOR THE STATE OF THE UNION IN
1941, ROOSEVELT PREPARED A BOLD
RESPONSE, HIS FAMOUS FOUR
FREEDOM SPEECH.
>> THERE IS NO PREVIOUS TIME AS
AMERICAN SECURITY IS AS
SERIOUSLY THREATENED FROM
WITHOUT AS IT IS TODAY.
FREEDOM MEANS THE SUPREMACY OF
HUMAN RIGHTS EVERYWHERE.
THOSE WHO STRUGGLE TO GAIN THOSE
RIGHTS AND KEEP THEM.
>> LESS THAN A YEAR LATER, WHEN
JAPAN ATTACKED PEARL HARBOR AND
THE U.S. ENTERED THE WAR, THE
FOUR FREEDOM SPEECH BECAME A
RALLYING CRY.
ROOSEVELT NEVER GOT TO SEE THE
VICTORY HIS WARTIME LEADERSHIP
MADE POSSIBLE.
IN APRIL 1945, NOT LONG BEFORE
THE WAR'S END, THE PRESIDENT
DIED AT HIS RETREAT IN WARM
SPRINGS, GEORGIA.
>> ABOARD A SPECIAL TRAIN
BEGINNING THE 24-HOUR TRIP BACK
TO WASHINGTON, THE 31st
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
LEAVES WARM SPRINGS FOREVER.
AND ALL ALONG THE 700 MILE
ROUTE, PEOPLE GATHERED TO HONOR
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT AND HIS
IDEALS.
>> A WHOLE GENERATION OF PEOPLE
HAD NEVER HAD ANOTHER PRESIDENT,
THE WORD PRESIDENT MEANT
ROOSEVELT.
IT WAS AS IF A FATHER HAD DIED
IN A FAMILY.
>> THE GRIEF THAT WAS SUFFERING
THE NATION COULD CERTAINLY BE
EXPRESSED BY THE TERRIBLE GRIEF
WHEN ROOSEVELT DIED.
>> THEY TOOK UP A COLLECTION FOR
BUS FARE SO HE COULD TRAVEL TO
FDR'S FUNERAL AT THE PRESIDENT'S
SECOND HOME IN HYDE PARK, NEW
YORK.
BUT WHEN THE TEENAGER ARRIVED
THERE, THERE WAS NO SPACE LEFT
FOR STUDENTS.
>> MRS. ROOSEVELT WAS COMING
FROM THE HOUSE.
I SAID MS. ROOSEVELT, I HAVE
COME 400 MILES TO BE HERE TODAY,
PLEASE LET ME STAY.
>> THE FIRST LADY AGREED TO THE
YOUNG MAN'S REQUEST.
AND BILL VANDENHEUVEL GREW TO BE
A MAN, GRADUATING FROM CORNELL
LAW SCHOOL, FDR'S EXAMPLE
CONTINUED TO INSPIRE HIM.
IN THE 1950s AND 60s, HE BECAME
INVOLVED IN DEMOCRATIC POLITICS
AND THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT.
SERVING AS AN ASSISTANT TO U.S.
ATTORNEY GENERAL ROBERT KENNEDY.
IN THE 1970s, JIMMY CARTER NAMED
HIM AS AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED
NATIONS, THE ORGANIZATION FDR
DREAMED OF AND HIS WIDOW HELPED
REALIZE.
>> THE OBJECT IS TO MAKE PEOPLE
EVERYWHERE CONSCIOUS OF THE
IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND
FREEDOM.
>> THROUGHOUT HIS CAREER,
VANDENHEUVEL MADE
HE ATTENDED A CEREMONY ON WHAT
WAS THEN WELFARE ISLAND.
WHERE NEW YORK GOVERNOR NELSON
ROCKEFELLER AND NEW YORK CITY
MAYOR JOHN LINDSEY RENAMED THE
SPACE ROOSEVELT ISLAND AND
ANNOUNCED PLANS TO BUILD A
MONUMENT.
>> AN ARCHITECT WAS CHOSEN TO
DESIGN THE PROJECT, LOUIS KAHN.
>> HE GOT THE AIA GOLD MEDAL,
THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF
ARCHITECTS HIGHEST LEVEL OF
ACHIEVEMENT.
>> MY FATHER LOVED FDR FOR SO
MANY REASONS.
MY FATHER WAS AN IMMIGRANT
COMING TO THIS LAND OF
OPPORTUNITY BUT HE LIVED IN
PRETTY SERIOUS POVERTY IN
PHILADELPHIA.
>> CANNES'S CONNECTION TO FDR
WAS DEEPENED BY PERSONAL
EXPERIENCE.
HE GOT HIS START IN THE
DEPRESSION ERA, IN AN
ARCHITECTURE PROGRAM CREATED BY
FDR'S WORK PROGRESS.
>> SUDDENLY ROOSEVELT'S IDEA
THAT THERE WAS ALWAYS THIS GREAT
UNTAPPED POTENTIAL IN AMERICA.
THERE IS GREATNESS WITHIN ALL OF
US, WE JUST NEED A CHANCE TO
BRING IT OUT.
>> KAHN WENT ON TO DESIGN
MASTERPIECES THAT WERE BOLD AND
IMPOSING, DRAWING INSPIRATION
FROM ANCIENT RUINS.
HIS BEST WORK INCLUDES THE SALT
INSTITUTE IN CALIFORNIA.
THE YALE CENTER FOR BRITISH ART
AND THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
BUILDING IN BANGLADESH.
HIS SON STILL REMEMBERS
KAHN'S EXCITEMENT.
>> TO BUILD A MEMORIAL TO
BELOVED PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT IN
NEW YORK CITY, ON AN ISLAND
RECENTLY RENAMED FOR ROOSEVELT,
IN THE STATE WHICH GAVE BIRTH TO
ROOSEVELT AS A POLITICAL FIGURE.
IT WAS THE COMMISSION OF A
LIFETIME AND HE TOOK IT VERY,
VERY SERIOUSLY.
>> KAHN'S DESIGN WAS BOTH A
GRAND MONUMENT AND A TRANQUIL
PARK.
A SET OF GRANITE STEPS LEADS TO
A POINT SHAPED LAWN WITH ROWS OF
TREES ON EITHER SIDE.
ON THE TIP OF THE POINT, STANDS
A BRONZE BURST OF ROOSEVELT AND
BEYOND THAT, WHAT KAHN CALLED
THE ROOM, IMPOSING STONE WALLS
UNDER AN OPEN SKY.
>> I REMEMBER MY FATHER WORKING
OVER THESE DIMENSIONS OF THE
BLOCKS.
HE WAS CONSTANTLY TRYING TO
FIGURE OUT HOW FAR APART THOSE
STONES SHOULD BE.
SHOULD THEY BE AN INCH, SHOULD
THEY BE A FOOT?
WHAT WAS THAT DIMENSION.
I THINK HE WAS LOOKING FOR THAT
POINT WHERE THEY WOULD JUST
VIBRATE WITH ENERGY.
>> BUT EXCITEMENT AROUND THE
PROJECT SOON TURNED TO
DISAPPOINTMENT.
IN 1974, NELSON ROCKEFELLER, A
KEY SUPPORTER OF THE MEMORIAL AS
GOVERNOR, MOVED TO WASHINGTON TO
BECOME VICE PRESIDENT IN THE
MIDST OF THE WATERGATE SCANDAL.
LOUIS KAHN DIED SUDDENLY OF A
HEART ATTACK IN PENN STATION.
THE FINANCIAL CRISIS THAT SOCKED
THE CITY SOON AFTER PUT
DISCRETIONARY PROJECTS LIKE THE
FDR MEMORIAL ON THE BACK BURNER.
>> IT LAY ON THE TABLE UNTOUCHED
FOR A LONG NUMBER OF YEARS.
>> THERE WAS TALK OF REVIVING
THE PLAN IN THE 1980s AND AGAIN
IN THE '90s, BUT IT WENT
NOWHERE.
STILL VANDENHEUVEL WOULD LET I
DIE.
>> HE CAME ACROSS THE ROOM, PUT
HIS HAND OUT AND HE SAID, HELLO,
I'M FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT JR.
AND IT WAS JUST INSTANT
SOMETHING HAPPENED BETWEEN US.
>> THE COUPLE MARRIED AND
STEVENSON BECAME MRS. FDR JR.
BY THEN, HER HUSBAND WAS IN HIS
70s AND BEGINNING TO THINK MORE
SERIOUSLY ABOUT HIS FATHER'S
LEGACY.
>> HE REVERED HIS FATHER SO MUCH
AND HE WAS VERY CLOSE TO HIM AND
HE THOUGHT FOUR FREEDOMS WAS
VERY IMPORTANT FOR EVERYONE TO
NOTICE AND PASS ON SO TO SPEAK
TO OTHER GENERATIONS.
>> EACH YEAR, THE ROOSEVELTS
ATTENDED AN INTERNATIONAL
CEREMONY MARKING THE FOUR
FREEDOMS.
WHEN THEY TRAVELLED TO HOLLAND
TO SPEAK AT THE 1988 EVENT,
ROOSEVELT WAS STILL SUFFERING
THE IMPACT OF A SERIOUS
ACCIDENT.
>> HE STOOD UP IN FRONT OF THE
QUEEN AND SAID, THIS WILL BE MY
LAST TRIP TO THE NETHERLANDS.
AND I'M REMOVING MY MANTLE AND
PLACING IT ON MY WIFE'S
SHOULDERS.
WELL, OF COURSE, THAT WAS QUITE
A WEIGHT PUT ON ME.
>> FDR JR. DIED A FEW MONTHS
LATER.
>> I'M IN A POSITION TO CARRY ON
FOR HIM AND I TRY TO DO THE
PROJECTS THAT WOULD BE HIS
INTERESTS.
AND THIS PARK WAS SOMETHING HE
VERY MUCH WAS HOPING WOULD BE
BUILT.
>> LOUIS KAHN'S YOUNGEST SON
SHARED THE HOPE THAT THE NEW
YORK ROOSEVELT MEMORIAL, HIS
FATHER'S FINAL ARCHITECTURAL
DESIGN COULD BECOME A REALITY.
NATHANIEL KAHN BEGAN WORKING ON
A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT HIS FATHER'S
LIFE AND WORK.
>> THROUGH MAKING THE FILM, I
FOUND OUT A LOT ABOUT HIM BOTH
AS AN ARCHITECT AND AS A PERSON.
>> THE FILM CALLED "MY
ARCHITECT" WAS RELEASED IN 2003.
>> FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, HE
WAS AFTER SYMMETRY, ORDER AND
GEOMETRIC CLARITY, ENORMOUS
WEIGHT.
>> IN RESEARCHING HISS FATHER'S
BLUEPRINTS, KAHN CAME ACROSS A
TREASURE TROVE OF DESIGNS.
>> THE U.S. CONSULATE IN ANGOLA,
THE CITY TOWER PROJECT.
>> SO MANY GREAT PROJECTS.
THESE WERE THINGS HE LOVED AND
THINGS HE WORKED ON FOR
SOMETIMES YEARS THAT DIDN'T
HAPPEN.
>> ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL OF
THE UNBUILT MASTER WORKS, THE
ROOSEVELT MEMORIAL IN NEW YORK
CITY.
>> NATHANIEL KAHN'S WORK DREW
RAVE REVIEWS.
>> WE SAW MANY MORE PEOPLE
VISITING THE COLLECTION HERE,
WANTING TO VISIT KAHN'S
BUILDINGS, ARRANGED FOR TOURS.
>> YOUNG KAHN'S FILMS GAVE THE
MEMORIAL PROJECT MOMENTUM IT HAD
NEVER HAD BEFORE.
A YOUNG NEW YORK ARCHITECT WAS
COMMISSIONED TO CO-CREATE --
ABOUT THE ARCHITECT SHE GREATLY
ADMIRED.
>> LOUIS KAHN WAS ALWAYS
CONSIDERED AN ARCHITECT'S
ARCHITECT.
>> THE EXHIBIT PROMPTED MAJOR
CONTRIBUTIONS TOWARD THE
MEMORIAL.
ADVERTISING EXECUTIVE SALLY
MENARD CAME ON BOARD AS
PRESIDENT OF THE PROJECT.
>> THE WHOLE IDEA OF A KAHN
DESIGN OF A MEMORIAL OF FDR OF
SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE OF NEW
YORK CITY, IT WAS SO EXCITING.
SO WE HAD TO RAISE $50 MILLION
IN THE GREATEST RECESSION SINCE
THE DEPRESSION, SO THAT WAS A
CHALLENGE.
WE JUST KEPT APPROACHING THE
HURDLES AND CLEARING THE HURDLES
AND FACING THE NEXT HURDLE.
>> PLANS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF THE
PROJECT NOW CALLED FOUR FREEDOMS
PARK BEGAN IN ERNEST.
>> IT WAS THRILLING, BUT IT ALSO
SUDDENLY GETS VERY SCARY.
BECAUSE YOU THINK HOW IS IT
GOING TO TURN OUT?
>> I REMEMBER HAVING A PANIC.
>> ON SITE THINGS WERE NOT
EXACTLY AS THEY LOOKED ON PAPER
AND GINA SAYS PARTS OF KAHN'S
DESIGN PUZZLED HER.
>> I REMEMBER SPEAKING TO A
FORMER CLASSMATE OF MINE FROM
COOPER SAYING, YOU KNOW, I DON'T
KNOW, WHAT IS THIS?
SHE JUST SAID, TRUST KAHN.
YOU HAVE TO TRUST KAHN.
>> IN EARLY 2010, WORKERS BROKE
GROUND ON FOUR FREEDOMS PARK.
>> A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME
WAS DEVOTED TO LOGISTICS PLAN,
GIVEN THAT YOU'RE ON AN ISLAND,
GIVEN THAT YOU'RE FACING SOME OF
THE STRONGEST CURRENTS ON THE
EASTERN SEABOARD.
>> THE FIRST STEP, LAYING A
FOUNDATION, PROVED TO BE ONE OF
THE MOST DIFFICULT.
>> THE FOUNDATION AT THE TIP OF
THE ISLAND HAD TO BE BUILT BELOW
WATER.
SO WE ACTUALLY HAD TO USE A SORT
OF STEEL SHEATHING TO HOLD BACK
THE WATER, A TEMPORARY DAM.
>> AT TIMES WE WERE LIKE EIGHT
TO TEN FOOT BELOW THE RIVER WHEN
THERE WERE EXTREME HIGH TIDES,
YOU KNOW THE WATER WOULD COME
RIGHT OVER THE TOP OF THE DAM.
>> TO HANDLE CONSTRUCTION OF THE
ROOM AT THE TIP OF THE ISLAND,
THE TEAM HIRED PORT MORRIS
TILES.
THE COMPANY HAD DONE THE STONE
WORK ON HUGE PROJECTS, LIKE
YANKEE STADIUM.
>> I WON'T FORGET THAT DAY.
I SAID TO MY BOSS, I SAID, YOU
KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS
FOR US.
HE TURNED TO ME AND HE SAID, IF
IT'S NOT FOR PORT MORRIS, IT'S
NOT GOING TO BE FOR ANYBODY.
>> THEY TRAVELLED TO A QUARRY IN
NORTH CAROLINA TO SELECT THE
FINEST GRANITE.
12 MILLION POUNDS WORTH.
>> THE 59th STREET BRIDGE CAN
ONLY HANDLE 30 TONS AT A TIME.
AND PORT MORRIS NEEDED TO BRING
IN COLUMNS WEIGHING UP TO 36
TONS.
SO THE GRANITE WAS TRUCKED TO
NEW JERSEY THEN TAKEN TO THE
SITE BY BARGE.
>> NOT UNLIKE SHIPPING THE HUGE
STONES UP THE NILE TO BUILD THE
PYRAMIDS, IT WAS REALLY THE
SAME, BRICK BY BRICK, BLOCK BY
BLOCK TECHNIQUE THAT WAS USED
HERE TO BUILD THIS PROJECT.
>> MRS. FDR JR., ONE OF THE
PROJECT'S BIGGEST SUPPORTERS FOR
A QUARTER CENTURY VISITED THE
CONSTRUCTION SITE AS OFTEN AS
SHE COULD.
>> WHEN THE FIRST 36-TON BLOCK
ARRIVED BY BARGE, AND THE MEN
WERE HOISTING IT ON TO THE PARK
AND SETTING IT IN PLACE, IT WAS
JUST TOTAL EXCITEMENT.
>> IN AN EARLIER ERA, IT'S JUST
THE SORT OF PROJECT THE WORKS
PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION WOULD
HAVE TAKEN ON.
ABOUT 100 TRAINED STONE SETTERS
POSITIONED 70 MASSIVE STONES IN
THE ROOM.
AND 260,000 SMALLER STONES
THROUGHOUT THE SITE.
LANDSCAPERS PLANTED LINDEN TREES
IN PERFECT ROWS.
A FOUNDRY CREATED A SIX-FOOT
BUST OF ROOSEVELT.
STONE ARTIST NICK BENSON
DESIGNED AND HAND CARVED AN
INSCRIPTION FROM THE FOUR
FREEDOMS SPEECH ON A COLUMN OF
GRANITE.
BUT JUST BEFORE THE PARK WAS TO
OPEN, A FINAL HURDLE.
A LEGAL DISPUTE ABOUT WHERE ON
THE SITE TWO DONORS COULD HAVE
THEIR NAMES ENGRAVED.
A NEW YORK STATE JUDGE QUICKLY
RULED ON THE DISPUTE ALLOWING
THE DEDICATION TO GO FORWARD.
>> IT'S BEEN A LONG AND
SOMETIMES DIFFICULT STRUGGLE,
BUT WHAT A MAGNIFICENT END.
>> ON OCTOBER 17, 2012, ALMOST
THREE YEARS AFTER CONSTRUCTION
BEGAN, BILL VANDENHEUVEL, MRS.
FDR JR. CULT THE RIBBON ON FOUR
FREEDOMS PARK.
>> I DID NOT VISUALIZE WHAT A
MAGNIFICENT WORK OF ART THIS WAS
GOING TO BE.
YOU COULD LOOK AT WHAT KAHN HAD
DRAWN.
>> YOU GO UP THAT GRAND
STAIRCASE AND YOU HAVE NOTHING
BUT GRANITE IN FRONT OF YOU, AND
YOU GET UP THE STAIRS AND YOU
PICK UP YOUR HEAD AND YOU LOOK
DOWN THAT ALLEY, THE LAWN AND
THE TREES GOING DOWN TO THE BUST
OF FDR.
>> THEN YOU STEP THROUGH A COURT
AND THEN INTO THIS ROOM AND
SUDDENLY YOU'VE BEEN PREPARED IN
THIS AMAZING WAY FOR THE
EXPERIENCE OF SPACE OPENING UP,
POSSIBILITIES OPENING UP, YOUR
OWN FREEDOMS OPENING UP.
>> AS FAMILIAR AS I WAS WITH
CONSTRUCTION DRAWINGS AND THE
DESIGN, THERE ARE ALL THESE
AMAZING THINGS THAT WE
DISCOVERED AS WE BUILT THE
PROJECT.
>> DETAILS LOUIS KAHN HAD
LABORED OVER, LIKE THE ONE-INCH
SPACES BETWEEN THE COLUMNS IN
THE ROOM THAT CREATES SLIVERS OF
LIGHT AS THE SUN RISES.
IN ITS FIRST YEAR, 130,000 VIZ
VISIT FORS CAME TO FOUR
FREEDOMS.
THE PARK'S FOUNDERS ARE SURE
THAT MORE WILL COME AND MANY
WILL COME BACK.
>> WHAT BRINGS PEOPLE THERE IS
THE BEAUTY OF THE SITE.
WHAT BRINGS THEM BACK AGAIN IS
THE PROGRAMMING THAT WE WILL
PLAN.
>> THE CONSERVANCY WHICH RUNS
THE PARK OFFERED GUIDED TOURS
AND ORGANIZES SPECIAL CULTURAL
EVENTS.
NATHANIEL KAHN WHOSE FATHER
DESIGNED THE MEMORIAL, HOPES THE
NEXT PHASE WILL BE A VISTORS
CENTER
>> WE OWE IT TO THE WORLD OF
ARCHITECTURE TO DO THIS NEXT
STEP AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL.
>> FROM THE TIME FOUR FREEDOMS
PARK WAS CONCEIVED, MANY NEW
YORKERS COULD FORESEE ITS
SIGNIFICANT.
THE "NEW YORK TIMES" EDITORIAL
BOARD WROTE THAT A MEMORIAL TO
ROOSEVELT ON THIS SITE WOULD
FACE THE SEA HE LOVED, THE
ATLANTIC HE BRIDGED, THE EUROPE
HE HELPED SAVE AND THE UNITED
NATIONS HE INSPIRED.
>> I THINK HE WOULD HAVE
APPRECIATED IT'S BEAUTY AND THE
FACT THAT THE UNITED NATIONS IS
REALLY THE PRINCIPAL OBJECT OF
OBSERVATION WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE
ISLAND.
IT'S HIS ISLAND IN THAT SENSE.
>> FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND
EXPRESSION, EVERYWHERE IN THE
WORLD.
FREEDOM OF EVERY PERSON TO
WORSHIP GOD IN HIS OWN WAY,
EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD.
FREEDOM FROM WANT MEANS ECONOMIC
UNDERSTANDS WHICH WILL SECURE TO
EVERY NATION A HEALTHY PEACETIME
LIFE EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD.
FREEDOM FROM FEAR, MEANS A
WORLDWIDE REDUCTION OF ARMAMENTS
TO SUCH A POINT THAT NO NATION
WILL BE IN A POSITION TO COMMIT
AN ACT OF PHYSICAL AGGRESSION
AGAINST ANY NEIGHBOR ANYWHERE IN
THE WORLD.
>> NEARLY 70 YEARS SINCE HIS
DEATH, NEW YORK FINALLY HAS A
MEMORIAL TO AN AMERICAN
PRESIDENT WHOSE MEMORY INSPIRES
THE CITY AND THE WORLD.
>> TO TAKE US OUT OF THE
DEPRESSION, TO GIVE US HOPE, TO
CRAFT THE ALLIANCE OF NATIONS
THAT WAS ABLE TO DEFEAT THE
WORST BARBARISM IN THE HISTORY
OF MANAGE KIND, IT'S WORTH
REMEMBERING.
>> STANDING IN THIS SPACE
SURROUNDED BY THE NATURAL BEAUTY
OF THE EAST RIVER, THE ELEGANT
ARCHITECTURE OF LOUIS KAHN AND
THE INSPIRATIONAL WORDS OF FDR,
IT'S NOT HARD TO UNDERSTAND WHAT
THE ADVOCATES OF FOUR FREEDOMS
PARK WORKED SO HARD TO ACHIEVE,
OR TO FEEL THE VALUE OF BRINGING
HISTORY TO LIFE.
I'M DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, THANK YOU
FOR JOINING US.
>> THIS PROGRAM IS MADE POSSIBLE
BY CORRINA ENDOWMENT FUND, DYSON
FOUNDATION AND VINCENT MAY AND
BERNARD AND IRENE SWARTZ.