The Enlightenment

On September 11th, 2001, terrorists associated with al-Qaeda hijacked four planes flying domestic routes in the United States. One plane crashed into the Pentagon building in Arlington, Virginia. Two planes crashed into the Twin Towers skyscrapers in New York City. The passengers of the fourth plane fought off the hijackers, causing the plane to crash land in Pennsylvania. 

It was a day that utterly shocked a nation. Chaos erupted. Sirens blared. And the death toll climbed. Almost 3,000 people died that day due to the evil actions of the al-Qaeda hijackers.

The panic, confusion, despair, and destruction did not end on September 11th. Hundreds of thousands of law enforcement officers, soldiers, EMT professionals, and others were called up to service to clear the rubble and remove the bodies. Families grieved for loved ones that had been alive just days ago as the country reeled in disbelief at the scale of the carnage.

As days turned into weeks, months, and years, the pain did not end. Thousands who cleared the rubble have died from respiratory illnesses and cancers caused by toxic elements at the site of the rubble. More have died from the effects of clearing the site than did on 9/11. Those officers and technicians who witnessed the event suffer from markedly higher rates of PTSD than typical workers in their fields. Tens of thousands live on with physical and mental disabilities.

The response by the US government did not alleviate the turmoil, and instead amplified it. The ever-looming question of “why” did not seem to be answered by a 2004 government commission, and it took the government a pitifully long 10 years before any medical care was provided for victims of the attack. Allegations of Saudi Arabian involvement, the US government’s opposition to allowing victims of 9/11 to sue Saudi Arabia, and the steady drip of declassified FBI documents in recent years has created a shroud of secrecy over 9/11 that has failed to provide the general public and victims closure.

On this day, I wish to remember the first responders, alive and passed, who gave their lives and livelihoods to protect us. I wish peace upon the dead; wisdom and comfort to the grieving; and eternal vigilance to our nation; so that an attack so terrible and consequences so harrowing may never visit us again.

Never Forget.

Picture courtesy of Alamy Stock Photo.