This Cheese Plate Is Classiest Souvenir At the 9/11 Memorial Museum

The 9/11 Memorial Museum is commemorating one of the darkest days in our nation’s history in the best way it can: With a commemorative cheese plate that will remind you of your freedom every time you it down to a delicious slice of Brie or a sliver of Gruyere.

While this may seem like a crass joke (and believe me, I wish it were) according to Gothamist this plate is really up for grabs and is nestled in the shop among other items such as cell phone cases — I <3 NY — and plush dogs in adorable search and rescue vests. While it is understandable that whoever is in charge of the museum may want to monetize the experience, I can’t see the cheese plate as anything but tacky, no matter how hard I try. And the Gothamist’s description of the entire thing just turns my stomach

From Gothamist:

The cheese plate is in the shape of the continental U.S., with hearts where the attacks hit NYC, DC and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Because no cheese course is complete without a moment to “Never forget” (to take our Lactaid). Let’s roll… that wheel of cheddar to Freedomtown?

A call I placed to the store did not yield a response —they only take messages — but Gothamist reports that the museum spokesman told The Washington Post the following:

Michael Frazier explained the Washington Post that the items in the shop were “carefully selected… To care for the Memorial and Museum, our organization relies on private fundraising, gracious donations and revenue from ticketing and carefully selected keepsake items for retail.” He also noted that during the period where 9/11 workers, survivors and victims’ families visited the museum, “[m]any of our guests from the 9/11 community have visited the shop and purchased a keepsake from their historic experience.”