Though some say 9/11 is a fading memory in the minds of Americans, it is unlikely Massachusetts drivers will soon forget. Drivers will soon be able to commemorate 9/11 with a specialty license plate and support 9/11-related causes at the same time.

Drivers can soon purchase the specialty plates for $40, after Acting Governor Jane Swift signed legislation to create the program yesterday. The plates will be adorned with an American flag and the words “United We Stand,” according to the Associated Press. Half of the proceeds will go to the state’s 9/11 victim’s fund and an additional 25 percent will go to local police and fire departments for terrorism preparations. The final quarter will go to the United States Justice Department for a program to reward those who help capture terrorists, according to the Associated Press.

The plate program is a great idea. The plates are an easy way to remember 9/11 and raise much-needed money for both police and fire terrorism preparations and support the victims of the terrorist attacks. Because many 9/11 victims were from Massachusetts, it is important for the state to go extra lengths to commemorate that solemn day. And it is appropriate that much of the proceeds would go to the families of those victims.

Funding programs to help prepare police and fire departments for terrorist activity is also a worthy cause. Better training of public safety officials can help lessen the damage of the inevitable next terrorist attack. Combining the lessons of 9/11 with the proceeds from a 9/11 remembrance program is a meaningful way to support the state’s terrorism protection efforts.

But parts of the new program are disturbing. Massachusetts should not be helping fund the U.S. Justice Department’s unwise program to reward those who spy and overreact to unfair stereotypes. The program is a bad idea, encouraging everyday citizens to look especially critically at races generally deemed suspicious and do the job of the FBI and other law enforcement agencies. The program could further encourage racial profiling and prejudices and exacerbate peoples’ post-9/11 paranoia. The program is poor in principle and should not be sneakily funded in an otherwise positive effort. Proceeds should have instead been directed toward local and professional anti-terror efforts.

Those who want to purchase the commemorative plates should be informed of exactly where their $40 is going. Because the Justice Department funding is controversial, it is important that state officials be honest and forthcoming with all details of the program. While few would object to helping fund police and fire department terrorist prevention programs, it is likely that many would object to the Justice Department program. State officials should let them make that conscious choice.

Using license plates to both raise money for post-9/11 activities and commemorate the attacks is a great idea that state politicians should be congratulated for. Though some parts of the program do raise concerns, the overall idea is positive and very helpful.