September 11, 2001

Who could ever forget that date? America, our country, our land, was attacked. Thousands of New Yorkers lost their lives in the destruction of the World Trade Centers; Mothers, Fathers, sons, daughters, friends, and loved ones were lost that day. Everywhere, tears were shed and anguish filled the hearts of many. I remember being in third grade having barely a clue, about the severity of the situation. I was in class at the time, and my friends were constantly leaving the room one by one. My teacher told us simply to go to the computer lab and play games until we were picked up. Like the clueless child I was, I was happy that school ended so abruptly. However, my mind got a big slap in the face once I realized the gravity of the situation. I came home to my mother sitting silently on the living room couch, staring at the TV screen nearly teary-eyed. I took a look at the TV and saw what she had been staring at. My face, excited for being home early, suddenly became empty. This was no happy situation. My mother came over to me and hugged me for a long time, talking endlessly about the people in the building. I didn’t know what to think. I was a mere child. The burning buildings didn’t pull me as much as it did to those who knew just what had happened. Now, when I think back about it, a great sadness just takes over me; I think of the people who died, their families, what they must be going through, and I always end up thanking God that no one in my family was hurt. Perhaps this is why, growing up early on, I never gave too much of my attention to the events of 9/11. If I had lost a family member, I’m sure I would be in deep pain even now, never forgetting their image as the numbers pass through my head.

Shortly after September 11th, the atmosphere over New York City changed. More security measures were being taken, racism against middle eastern people grew, a stark sadness came upon the City’s people as well as a great sense of patriotism, and the tallest building that loomed over everyone and everything, was gone. Fast forward to now, life in New York City is back to normal. One would think that after the attacks, city dwellers would be overcome with fear and flood the more suburban areas, and that no one would want to visit New York in fear of another attack, yet quite the opposite happened. A lot of people still live and work in New York City today and tourism is also pretty high just as it was before the attacks. For those outside of New York, their perception of New York City did not change (at least not significantly) despite the devastating event ten years ago. Foreigners from all over the world, and from other parts of America still come here for the same reasons they did before September 11th. They still come to see the art, the plays, the amazing city lights, and to do some sightseeing. However, this doesn’t mean that they just overlook what happened on 9/11. They are well aware of what happened, it’s just that the image and fantasy of New York still prevails in the minds of many.

Although the impact of 9/11 was widespread in America, it proved to hold more meaning to those who lived in New York City. For starters, that’s where the attack was directed. New York lost one of its biggest icons and thousands of its people. No one else felt the pain that New York felt. We lost people in our community. The people that don’t live in New York don’t understand how the loss truly feels, save a few. I can say this with certainty. The family men and women of New York in the World Trade Center, the first responders from our brave police and fire department, gone.

Although artists constantly portray September 11th in many ways, not one of them can truly portray the traumatic events as it unfolded that very day. There are many moving pieces of art about 9/11 that do capture great emotion and have a lot of meaning, but nothing comes close to expressing the first hand destruction of the Twin Towers but the event itself. There’s just too much for any one piece of art to capture. Recreating the confusion, the anger, and the sadness that enveloped that day just seems impossible. You can tell one story, or maybe hundreds about 9/11 with a piece of art, but you can never get the real feeling unless it is repeated, God forbid.

September 11th was a tough day for all of us in New York. Although it was only 10 years ago, we still remember. Every New Yorker has their own experience that they remember quite vividly. Even someone like me who was a mere kid at the time, can recall that very day (although in a much different way). I’ll never forget it. God bless the people who lost their lives that day, and the families that mourn them. In particular, I want to give my special thanks and prayers to Cesar Borja, a family friend, who was a first responder on that fateful day. God bless his soul, and may they all rest in peace.

*Flashback*
Date: September 11th, 2001
Place: New York City

There I was. Sitting in Mrs. Marcus’ third grade class, without a clue as to what was about to unfold. My day started off like any other day, breakfast, morning cartoons, failed attempt at trying to stay home from school by faking some sort of ailment, and eventually ending up at my elementary school, P.S. 46 located in Bayside. Mrs. Marcus had just told us to take out our grammar workbooks, when the commotion began to start. Being seated right next to the door, I could see that teachers started to roam the halls and whispering to one another. Since I was a mere eight years old, my logic was that the teachers were about to throw some major surprise party for everyone in the gymnasium… sadly I was wrong. RING RING RING! The phone rang and student number one was told to leave the room. My jealously raged as I saw this child freed from the tortures confined within this jail they called school, until the phone rang again. RING RING RING! Another student is told to gather their things and meet their mother downstairs. I could not believe how lucky these kids were, until the phone rang once more. RING RING RING! Astonishingly, I was the next kid told to go home. Jumping with joy, without thinking twice about why parents would be picking up their kids from school, I picked up my Scooby Doo backpack and skipped down stairs to find my mother in the office. All of a sudden my smile was wiped clear off my face. My little brother was being taken home too after being home sick for three days! That’s when I knew something was wrong. The phones were ringing off the hook in the office and parents were flooding the main entrance. We leave school to pick up my older brother, and I asked my mother what was wrong. She says, “I don’t know.” We get home and I turn on the T.V. to two buildings on fire, tons of smoke, and people in fear. I asked, “Where is that?” and my mother responds “In the city.” “Isn’t that where Dad works?” “Yes, his building is a couple of blocks away.” “Is he ok?” “I don’t know.”

This memory will forever be a part of me, and my perception of New York City. I didn’t know it at the moment, but with time I realized that this memory would always give me a sort of intimate connection with the city itself that no one else would understand. Yes, the nation was attacked and, as Americans, we all felt vulnerable for the first time in I don’t know how many years, but when you could see the cloud of smoke from your window, it’s difficult to actually take it all in. At first, it was the fear for my father’s life, then it was the fear for the people in that building, and eventually I was worried about my own well being. I’m not saying that the 9/11 experience New Yorkers felt was more traumatic than someone who wasn’t living in New York City, but it was very personal. Everyone was scared, nobody knew why or what was going to happen next, all we knew was that something terrible had happened.

I can definitely say that although 9/11 was a tragic event, it did bring out the best in most New Yorkers. For the next couple of months, my father told me how people were much more willing to help one another and console one another as if we were all one big family that had just experienced a death in the family. He said that he had never seen the city pull together so closely in his entire life. If you weren’t a New Yorker, you wouldn’t have been able to see the direct effect 9/11 had had on the people of New York City, which makes it that much more meaningful to New Yorkers in my eyes.

The artists who portray 9/11 in their work will all get the same emotion, fear, sadness, maybe even a little anger. But it’s those who take such a tragic event and use it to convey a sense of hope that I feel portray it effectively. Within all the heartbreak and tears, emerged a sense of good will and hope that urged people to pull together in under such tragic circumstances. The 9/11 Peace Story Quilt is a perfect example of an artwork that displays the events in a meaningful way. Not only does it present the stories of multiple New Yorkers on that day, but it also bestows people with that sense of hope felt afterwards that everything is going to be ok. Michael Moore and his film Fahrenheit 9/11, on the other hand, was a piece of artwork that not only exploited a tragic event to convey a political message but took advantage of people’s emotions. The last thing someone should do is take a terrible event and use it for his or her own personal gain, which is far from meaningful. Despite artists similar to Michael Moore, there are people out their who can and have effectively taken the events of 9/11 and portrayed them in way that brings hope into our hearts.

Everyone has their own memory of 9/11 that is just as important to them as it is to me. If one can remember the events as clearly and vividly as I do to this day, it definitely was a major milestone in one’s life. The traumatic events gave people a new perspective on New York City, and that all depends on how you look at it. Maybe it was some sort of sympathy, understanding, fear; regardless New York City would never be the same to anyone. The World Trade Center, two of the largest buildings in the world, were taken off the face of the earth only to live within our hearts and minds.

I must say I was never personally affected by the 9/11 attacks. I had never gotten the chance to set foot or even see the Twin Towers. I was in my third grade classroom at the time, struggling to pay attention in math class. I remember my classmates getting picked up by their parents. As the classroom grew emptier, I grew more impatient. I was terribly confused, but not at all scared. (I had no idea one of our country’s greatest landmarks was being destroyed by terrorists.) It wasn’t until I got home that I learned the Twin Towers had collapsed. I spent the rest of the evening sitting in front of the television with my family, watching the news in horror. I don’t really remember much else that had happened that day. Because I was so young at the time, and really hadn’t experienced the city at all, 9/11 did not change my perception of New York.

There were many others, however, that were directly affected by this incident. New York used to be seen as a city that was safe and lively. It was a symbolism of hope, a place where people could make their “dreams come true”. After the attacks though, people realized that no matter how prosperous and whimsical New York may seem, it could still be a target for catastrophic attacks. 9/11 destroyed the healthy image of New York City for many people. When the Twin Towers fell, a large part of New York’s majestic reputation was destroyed. Other than this, nothing much has changed in New York. Many people went about their business the very next day, and carried on with their daily routines. This incident epitomizes E.B White’s (author of “Here is New York” and Charlotte’s Web) words when he states that New York “is peculiarly constructed to absorb almost anything that comes along”. Even though our city suffered a traumatic event, it is still strong enough to continue functioning. Even ten years after the terrorist attacks, New York is still one of the most tourist-attracting cities in the country.

I don’t think 9/11 is any more meaningful to New Yorkers than it is for everyone else. If one of the states in America is attacked, the whole country is affected. Every American was affected in some way from this incident. Also, there were other sites in America that were under attack, such as the Pentagon in Washington D.C.

Artists can definitely portray 9/11 in a meaningful way. A perfect example would be the documentary Fahrenheit 9/11. Michael Moore was able to show the audience the significance of our loss of the Twin Towers. Though he chose a perspective that judged President Bush very harshly, Moore managed to express his message very clearly. Another piece of artwork that captures the importance of 9/11 is the 9/11 Peace Story Quilt at the MET. This quilt focuses on the 9/11 attacks but also stresses the importance of “communication across cultures and religions to achieve the goal of peace”. Artists can create works of art that help preserve our memories of the most significant historical events of our nation.

It is remarkable that two numbers can have such an impact in the minds of a New Yorker. Nine-elleven. It is a number that no one can mistake or erase from their memories, no matter how hard they may try.  It is a number that holds extreme significance in American society, as well as importance around the world. It is a number that many people associate with different ranges of emotions, from fear to pain to compassion to anger. The World Trade Center attack was more than just a number though. It was an event that destroyed the naivety of the city to the outside world. 9/11 was a wake up call.

Ringing phones bombarded my house the day of 9/11. Everyone was concerned for my mom, who worked downtown on Wall Street during the time. Luckily for me and everyone who knew her, my mom was late to work that day. She was just about to head into the city when she quickly turned on the T.V. and flipped on the news to look at traffic reports. What she saw instead was something that would change he perception of New York for the rest of her life. She remembers the day so vividly; her panic, calling her friends who were working across the street from the Towers, seeing the second plane crash into the building and in that moment the phone line going dead. She remembers the confusion surrounding how she should grapple the issue of explaining the event to my brother and I, who were 7 and 5 respectively. She remembers not going to work for 3 weeks afterwards and loosing a whole firm that she worked with to the attacks. Every single person in the company dead. She remembers the smell of burning rubble and the feeling of her burning eyes; from both the debris in the air and the tears she cried.

My perception of the event was extremely different. On that day I remember a strange feeling among the teachers in the school. There was a certain tense vibe about them, one that I never got from my calm second grade teacher. I remember being upset that I wasn’t allowed to play outside during recess that day, and not understanding why. I was so disappointed and cursed whatever reason stopped me from my playtime. I remember, selfishly, that I was happy that my mom wasn’t going to work for three weeks. I loved it when stayed home, and I remember during those weeks wishing something else would come up so that my mom would never have to work again and she could spend all her time with me. I was happy and unconcerned.

We both looked at the event of 9/11 through different lenses. One from the perspective of a mature adult and the other of an innocent child. Over the course of the past couple of weeks we have read and observed works of art from these two vastly different points of view. The Peace Quilt and parts of the novel of Extremely Loud and Incredibly close reflects the innocence yet complex emotions revolving around 9/11 from a child’s perspective. On the other hand, The Mercy Seat and the film Fahrenheit 9/11 both involve the morality and politics surrounding the day, ideas that involve a more mature audience. Both are significant and play a role in the portrayal of the event. The works of art we viewed all had a way of taking the trauma of 9/11 and making it personal or meaningful. They all served a purpose and reflection on the event, a way of expressing the varying changing feelings after the catastrophe. The most important fact is that the emotions in all the works of art are legitimate. They are a response to the attack and therefore are appropriate ways of coping, shaping, and recovering from the event. In order to move on and heal, people need to write, draw and express in any way they possibly can. Art is a necessary part of the process and includes portraying the event in ways that are meaningful to every individual.

Since 9/11 there seems to have been a growing wariness throughout the City, as well as the country. The World Trade Center attack was so impact full because in a sense it is the first time the U.S. was completely vulnerable and unaware. Before, the City was a place of life and vitality, somewhere that had never been in fear of attacks or “terrorism.” Since then, people are more aware of the who they are sitting next to on the bus. They keep their cellphones with them at all times. They dare not to take liquids on a plane or look the flight attendant in the eye for too long, for fear that they might be “suspicious looking.” On that day, the ignorance and bliss of America was destroyed. Now war is all we seem to read about and the economy is all we complain about. The perception of the world around us and our image of the United States to foreign countries was questioned. Maybe we aren’t so great after all? Why would another group of people be so bitter towards us…all we want is democracy, right? How could the U.S. have been so blind to the threats and not have taken any action to prevent this attack? The eyes of the American public are now opened.

I think the attack of 9/11 holds different significance to individuals based on how they were connected to the attack, rather than where they were located. For example, a person living on the Upper West Side could have been more removed from the event than a person living in Mississippi who had a brother that worked in the Towers. Meaningfulness is all relative. Obviously, those who live in New York City have a greater likelihood of being more intertwined with The World Trade Center attacks just because of where they live and who they know, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that people from outside weren’t effected as well, on another level. The 9/11 attacks effected individuals around the world in different ways. Whether it be their mentality of traveling to other countries or foreign policies or having to witness your parent’s death, 9/11 was traumatic and effected everyone in a certain way.

I don’t think there is a life in New York that wasn’t touched by 9/11. Even if it wasn’t personal, a sense of safety and security was diminished. Even though I myself don’t remember much from before 9/11, I do know that the airport wasn’t so ridiculously difficult to get into and you stare at the skyline without feeling like something is missing.

While I don’t think perceptions of New York were changed, New Yorkers themselves were changed. We were (and still are) proud people, but our ability to feel safe in the city we lived and worked in was diminished. Outsiders were too scared to come here and for a while New Yorkers were stunned. The event that occurred was literally unthinkable, especially because we all thought it was an accident at first. I remember sitting in my classroom feeling horribly jealous of all the kids that got to go home. My third grader mind didn’t register the fact that if more than half of my class had left that something terrible must have happened. I was ecstatic when my mom finally picked me up, but once I saw her face I knew I shouldn’t show my joy. The one thing I remember more than anything was watching the news when I got home. Some may think it was wrong for my mom to let me watch the news, but looking back on it I’m glad she did. It isn’t like the tragedy traumatized me, but it let me know that the world wasn’t a utopia and things could go wrong. The most destructive factor about nine eleven, besides the lives lost, is the loss of feeling safe. Obviously though, New York has built itself back up. It continues to be a center for commerce and tourism for people all over the world.

In all honesty, I do think that art can accurately portray the events that occurred on 9/11. Works like Fahrenheit 9/11 and The Mercy Seat hit home when it comes to the event that they surround their work with. Although Fahrenheit 9/11 used the tragedy to display why Bush was a horrible president, it still showed the importance of the event and the severity of it. The Mercy Seat took a more personal route. I love the fact that it took a point of view that more than always would never be considered at the time of a seriously devastating event. Art tends to get every angle of an event or an idea. 9/11 was such a huge event that so many artists can take their vision and portray it right. The Mercy Seat made us stop and think, Fahrenheit 9/11 made us angry and the peace quilts touched a soft spot in our hearts. All three separate works of art evoked different feelings in us for the very same event. To me, this is valid proof that art can truly portray 9/11 and the events that happened that day.