I was three and half years old when the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 11 September 2001 occurred. I have no conscious memories of that day or the time after. However, I know that my life has been significantly shaped by the attacks and the subsequent events. All of our lives have been. This event led to increased security in airports and at border crossings. I have lived most of my life in the post 9/11 world, an era of widespread terror and fear. The attacks of 11 September 2001 changed some things forever but do most of us even realize this? Do we realize the chaotic events that happened on a global scale as a result of this catastrophe?
What Happened That Day?
Witnesses will say that September morning in 2001 started just like another other. Yet, before 10 am 19 militants associated with the Islamic fundamentalist group al-Qaeda hijacked four planes leaving the east coast. Two of the planes were flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, one hit the Pentagon and the final one crashed in rural Pennsylvania. The intended target of the fourth plane remains unknown, although many people speculate it was meant for either the White House or the Capitol. A total of 2,996 people died on 11 September 2001. A staggering 2,763 of those people were at the World Trade Center, including responding emergency personnel. Another 10,000 people in close proximity to the towers were treated for injuries of various severity. Undeniably, this was a massive loss of life. 9/11 saw the loss of more lives than the attack on Pearl Harbor and Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It was the deadliest attack on American soil in history. Every year on this day we are reminded that the United States and the world will never allow themselves forget this tragedy.
May every person lost on this tragic day rest in enteral paradise.
The Aftermath
The United States had just experienced a catastrophic incident of international terrorism. Emotions were running high in the White House and across the country. It is within this context that Bush launched the "war on terror". Essentially, this meant that the President of the United States was to use all necessary and appropriate force against the nations, organizations and persons determined to have planned, authorized, committed or aided terrorists in the 9/11 attacks. The "war on terror" led to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks was eventually killed by US forces in Pakistan on 2 May 2011 but at what cost to our collective humanity?
The hardest part for me to digest about the "war on terror" is that it allowed for American military personnel to ABUSE and TORTURE those who were deemed terrorists. The Guantanamo Bay detention camp was set up in 2002 to hold terrorists outside the mainland United States. Bush declared that the detainees held there would not be protected as prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention. This meant that inmates were held indefinitely without trial and could be subject to harsh punishments bordering on torture. In January 2018, Trump signed an order for the detention camp to remain open indefinitely. 40 detainees currently remain there. I cannot fathom how these circumstances were allowed to continue. Guantanamo Bay violated the United States Constitution and was considered a major breach of human rights by Amnesty International.
If United States military personnel could torture detainees so close to home it's not hard to imagine they abused their authority even farther from US soil. In fact, they did. At Abu Ghraib Prison in Iraq physical and sexual abuse, torture, rape, sodomy and murder by the American military were common. I have included one photo from Abu Ghraib Prison of torture. Most other photos were extremely graphic. But it is important to know that these atrocities happened. The United States had a right to be devastated by the loss of life caused by the 11 September attacks. They were probably even justified in their compulsive need to kill Osama bin Laden and his co-conspirators. However, torture and abuse on this level can never be excused. Several military personnel involved were never persecuted nor held criminally responsible.
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| https://whenthenextdaycomes.wordpress.com/2012/04/01/abu-ghraib-prison-scandal/ |
The "war on terror" is technically ongoing to this day. It has been criticized for its morality, efficiency and cost. Based on the facts I stated above, I think those criticisms, especially concerning morality, are completely accurate. The casualties of the "war" in the Middle East are estimated anywhere from 1.3 million to 2 million. An additional 37 million people have been displaced. The "war on terror" has led to 10,008 American deaths 56,422 American injuries. Is this what we mean by an eye for an eye? They killed Americans so Americans had the right to kill them? This is what fear does to people. It causes them to do irrational, unthinkable acts in the name of national security and pride.
| https://today.law.harvard.edu/roundup/reflections-15th-anniversary-911/ |
I am not suggesting that the 11 September attacks should not be commemorated every year. Close to 3,000 lives were cut short that day and I'm sure their families are still mourning. Approximately 10,000 people had been diagnosed with 9/11 related cancer as of 2018. Tens of thousands of lives, if not more, in the United States were directly altered forever. That will always matter. However, we have to also understand what happened as a result of that day and the loss of life, torture, displacement and severe human rights violations that were orchestrated overseas predominately by the United States. Knowing the full story is crucial. How many more people will die because of Islamophobia and fear in the west?
Sources
https://www.history.com/topics/21st-century/9-11-attacks#section_9
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