The attack on America laid the path for how we got to where we are.
On Sept. 11, 2001, America suffered brutal and unforgiving attacks that destroyed lives and changed the course of history. It is impossible to forget — the events of that day left a mark on all of us. Nor should we; the families of the victims cannot. But remembering isn't always that pure. In a guest essay, Laila Lalami questioned the way in which the memorialization of this day has also been warped by ulterior motives, the tragedy of lives lost "drowned out by the noise of everything else Sept. 11 has become: a significant moment in history; a justification for endless wars, xenophobia and nationalism; a crass, multimillion-dollar business." |
That was made clear in the conversations Meher Ahmad had with several Muslim Americans who grew up in the wake of the attacks. "When I was a nursing assistant," Noha Thalib told Ahmad, "I came into a room and greeted a patient. The first thing that came out of her mouth was, 'Are you a terrorist?'" Such moments may be fleeting, but the message is lasting. And while some may believe Jan. 6, 2021, changed Americans' perception of who our enemies really are, others are less sanguine. As Spencer Ackerman wrote last week, "Jan. 6 is less a bookend to the Sept. 11 era than a manifestation of it." Where that leaves America today is anyone's guess. |
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