“It’s really horrifying”- 9/11 Families United to protest LIV golfers at 2023 Masters

Augusta National on Tuesday announced its decision to allow LIV golfers to play the 2023 Masters. The decision, which comes amid the raging LIV Golf-PGA Tour debate, was welcomed with mixed reactions. One group that completely slammed the move is 9/11 Families United.

The national chair of 9/11 Families United, a group consisting of families of the victims of the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001, strongly criticized Augusta National's move on Tuesday. Dubbing it a "coward's reaction" from the officials, Terry Strada, whose husband Tom was killed in the 9/11 attacks, said that it was "really horrifying" to see LIV players being allowed to play the Masters at Augusta.

The group, which spent months speaking out against the golfers joining the controversial league backed by Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, said they would protest the move.

Strada was speaking in a phone interview with USA TODAY Sports when she slammed Augusta National's announcement.

“It’s really horrifying to see that it’s going to be played out at the Masters in Augusta, the one place I would have hoped to have never seen them be able to play… It’s the one place I would have hoped that would have stood up and taken a stand.”

She added:

“Actions do speak louder than words. It takes real courage to stand for the values that you’ve been preaching all these years and to not waver on them, and I feel like this is a coward’s reaction to allow them to play… I didn’t have very high expectations of Donald Trump [when he hosted LIV tournaments this year] but I certainly thought that Augusta would have more class and care more about the 9/11 community than this. This is a slap in the face.”

9/11 Families United to protest LIV golfers

Strada stated that 9/11 Families United might protest at the Masters in April against LIV golfers. The group's national chair recalled their protest at Trump's Bedminster golf course in July during the LIV Golf event.

She said:

“I went to Bedminster because it was literally in my backyard from where I lived on September 11, 2001, and I have every intention of going to Augusta for the Masters in the spring. That will allow our voices to be heard on the world stage.”

It is pertinent to note that the group's decision to protest LIV Golf came after President Joe Biden declassified an FBI report regarding Saudi Arabia's involvement in the September 11 attacks. Despite 15 of the 19 attackers being Saudi citizens, the Arab nation's administration had always dismissed their involvement.

Moreover, LIV Golf's backer, Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, has also been accused of killing Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. The crown prince was dubbed the mastermind behind the killing by the United Nations and intelligence agencies.

Owing to this, several human rights advocacy groups have raised their voices against LIV Golf. Many, including 9/11 Families United, protested the controversial series claiming that the Saudi Arabian administration was funding it as an attempt at sports washing their reputation.