Remembering 9/11 in a Generation That Did Not Live Through It

Ellie Hood

September 11th, 2001, 7:45am – It is any old Tuesday morning at the World Trade Center in New York City, New York. Employees settle in at their desks and in conference rooms, unaware that in one hour’s time, this any-old-Tuesday would become the most infamous Tuesday of the 21st century.

8:00am – American Airlines Flight 11 takes off from the Boston Logan International Airport. There are 92 people aboard. 

8:14am – United Airlines Flight 175 takes off from the same airport. There are 65 people aboard.

8:20am – American Airlines Flight 77 takes off from Dulles International Airport, just outside Washington D.C. There are 64 people aboard

8:41am – Five minutes before the first hit, United Airlines Flight 93 takes off from Newark International Airport. There are 44 people aboard. 

8:46am – Flight 11 crashes into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

9:03am – Flight 175 crashes into the South Tower.

9:37am – Flight 77 crashes into the western side of the Pentagon. 

10:07am – The hijackers aboard Flight 93 deliberately crash the plane into a field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania after the passengers try to retake the plane.

 

2,977 people dead. 6,000 more injured. This was officially the worst act of terrorism the world had ever seen. Yesterday, September 11th, 2019, was the 18th anniversary of this tragic event; an anniversary recognized by an entire generation of kids who were not even alive yet when the towers came down. 

Those of us in high school now don’t know a world without 9/11. The fear of terrorism, the war on terrorism, is normal. It is easy for us to forget, because there is nothing for us personally to remember. But to those who were there that day–the victims, the victims’ families, the first responders, and the millions of Americans who watched the news that day–this event is impossible to erase. 

We cannot allow ourselves to forget 9/11. The victims. The families. The first responders.

We cannot allow ourselves to forget the war on terrorism. The thousands of soldiers fighting in Afghanistan to end terrorism, and their families. 

Many wild and precious lives were lost that day. Many wild and precious lives continue to be lost overseas. You may not know the victims personally. You cannot reverse what happened. In fact, there is almost nothing a high schooler can do to stop the spread of terrorism. 

The least you can do is remember.

 

Timeline from History.com

https://www.history.com/topics/21st-century/9-11-timeline

Photos by James Nachtwey