Most of us are well-versed in what occurred on Sept. 11. 23 years ago, in New York and Washington, D.C. This was largely thanks to our public education, where we annually renewed our remembrance of the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil. From watching the old news reports and first-hand footage to listening to our educators’ personal anecdotes, we were often expected to have just as strong of a connection to that day as those who had witnessed it. But for many of us in Generation Z, 9/11 is presented more as a history lesson to remember than as an event we can emotionally connect to. Though we may not have been alive on the day of the attacks, it is our generation that has never known American life before them. So why have prior generations taken to solely discussing the events of 9/11 rather than explaining it in a way we can relate to?
Our generation has been shaped around the societal fears that were instigated by the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Many of us are accustomed to relatively new ways of living in American society. From the constant security present at major social events to simply entering an airport, we have all come to accept these modern standards as normal. We have also, consequently, taken on many poor generalizations of Islamic and Middle Eastern peoples due to what we’ve witnessed in the media. Up until only a few years ago, we’ve lived through the United States military presence in the Middle East, which has certainly made our views of our military and foreign relations unique to our generation. We often see the military as far less dependable than earlier generations because of the many unsuccessful campaigns of the last two decades. Today, we also find many Middle Eastern countries just as unstable as they were before our post-9/11 occupation, forcing us to question our government’s ability to build strong foreign relations. The way we choose to perceive conflicts in the Middle East, such as the Israel/Hamas war, has been influenced by what we have been taught to be apprehensive of. We have unknowingly learned fears of many possible threats that, incidentally, are often irrational.
We are the next generation responsible for educating our youth about the significance of the Sept. 11 attacks. While we should and always will remember the events of that day and honor the lives that were lost, it is equally fundamental to relate its effects to our lives today. Without properly framing the consequences of 9/11, future generations will lose its significance. Just as we learned about the Vietnam War and the ensuing political and societal changes in America, we must ensure that we truly understand the terrorist attacks of 2001 in terms of modern American culture and beliefs. Moving forward, our 9/11 remembrances should not only focus on reflection but also further inquiry and discussion of how our lives today are affected by this tragic event.