I was able to go to the 9/11 with my mom today after the group went to the memorial. On the way to the memorial I was thinking about the terrorist attacks and the effect that they had on New York City. 9/11 has been an event that has always been present in my life, but I had never truly thought about the event itself, just the feeling of pain that it had left on the United States. Growing up outside of New York City with family members and parents who had worked in the city allowed for me to feel a connection the memorial. I had actually found out from my mom today that my aunt worked on the 108th floor of the North Tower, and on September 11th she had a doctor’s appointment so she did not come into work. To this day my aunt has refused to come back to Ground Zero or to walk through the memorial or the new World Trade Center.
It was harder than I thought to go through this memorial with my mom. Today I also found out that my mother had worked on the 101st floor of the World Trade Center, and it was particularly difficult for her to walk around the area where she had once worked. She talked about how amazing the towers were, and what it was like in New York City when they stood looming over the city’s skyline. As an adult who experienced the immediate effects of 9/11, she said she had been avoiding going to the memorial. Something that I found particularly interesting is that throughout the entire day, my mom kept remembering more and more about that day and what it had meant to her in the moment. This made me think back to Maurice Halbwachs and his notion of collective memory and how it can apply to the individual. By looking at photos and the old news reels that were present within the museum, my mom remembered the complete disbelief that was felt on that day.
As I walked down the stairs in the museum, I was presented with a quote from Virgil: “No day shall erase you from the memory of time”. I found this to be one of the most powerful messages throughout the entire memorial. Not only does this quote pertain to the aspect of collective memory, but I also was reminded about the notion of what it means to commemorate and memorialize. This memorial was created in order to remember those who were lost and to create their place in history. As a child growing up in a post 9/11 world, I usually blanket the actual day just as “September 11th” or “9/11”. This memorial made me think of the day itself, and instead of the pain that was felt afterward I learned fully about the pain that experienced while these events were occurring. This quote made me think about what it really means to remember, and the many ways that we can and do remember the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11th.
I found this trip to be extremely moving and educational. I learned more than I could have imagined about this day. Words cannot describe the feeling that I felt when I entered the hallway that featured the before and after 9/11 pieces. When looking at newspaper issues on September 11th, 2001, it is strange to think that everyone woke up on a Tuesday thinking it was like any other Tuesday. But from now on, September 11th will remain one of the biggest days in American history.
I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of the sound walk, which I felt added to the overall experience of the memorial. I felt that it helped me to really imagine what it must have been like to experience these events first hand. I felt the pain and suffering of those who lost loved ones on this terrible day. One of the most moving parts of this sound walk was the dad who was talking about losing his son who worked 38 floors above his office on the 105th floor. This father talked about the hatred he had for the al-Qaeda members who committed the attacks, and how he was unable to live with the anger and pain that they had caused him. I found this to be particularly powerful because there was one part of the museum that focused on the hunt for al-Qaeda after 9/11 and the hunt for Osama Bin Laden. It is hard to discuss 9/11 and not think about Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaeda, but when we are remembering 9/11 it is imperative that we think about the good and the bad. Although I did not personally lose a loved one in these attacks, I agreed with this father when he was discussing his feelings of anger and hate towards those who took his son’s life.
I think that this is an important piece of remembering 9/11. In our world, because of the media and our interconnectedness it is impossible to stop thinking about those who took 3,000 American lives on September 11th. Although we might want to focus on those who died instead of those who did the killing, the perception of 9/11 in American society to this day heavily focuses on al-Qaeda and the terror that they caused.
Throughout the entire museum you are constantly faced with the people who lost their lives on September 11th. This mode of remembrance is almost being forced down our throats, and as I walked through the museum I was thinking about the decision to present the memories of those fallen in that way. Andreas Huyssen states that “is it the fear of forgetting that triggers the desire to remeber, or is it perhaps the other way around?” (Huyssen 431) This made me think of what this museum is trying to accomplish. Obviously we are trying to remember- but for what reasons?
I am writing about 9/11 for my final research project and I found that this museum was extremely helpful in learning more about how our country reacted to this terrible event. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of listening to the sound walk and walking through the museum.