This year marks the 20th anniversary of the attacks on Sep. 11, 2001. In honor of the 20th anniversary, the university held commemorations, an academic panel, an experiential panel and a flag tribute for those lost on Sep. 11, according to the university’s September 11: 20 Years Later page.
“9/11 should always be a reminder that tomorrow is never promised,” wrote Joshua Feld ’22, one of the student coordinators of the flag tribute.
To pay tribute to the lives lost on Sep. 11, the university collaborated with students Feld and Zachary Vossler ’22 to place flags in the grass by the Louis Brandeis statue on campus. The university posted a picture of the flag tribute on their Instagram page, writing that the flags were to “commemorate those lost on September 11,” according to the post. American flags were also placed on the Great Lawn to honor the anniversary, according to the university’s page.
Feld and Vossler collaborated with the university administration to come up with suggestions for the type of commemoration and the implementation of the flag tribute, wrote Feld in an email interview with The Hoot. The two worked with the Department of Student Affairs to create the display, wrote Feld.
Vossler wrote that he wanted to pay tribute to those lost on Sep. 11 for multiple reasons, including wanting to honor the heroism of those lost while trying to help others, to honor the innocent people who were going about their routine either going to work or traveling and to make sure that those who are too young to recall the events of that day remember it as well.
Another reason Vossler included was the fact that there are people simulating the events of Sep. 11 using video games and then uploading them to the internet.
“Many were commenting on how distasteful these videos are, however, their creators would try and silence many of our concerns. It is our duty as young people to fix what is broken and prevent this from ever happening again, and doing an act of kindness (or remembrance), is a great start to pave the way forward and honor those who lost their lives on a fateful day,” wrote Vossler.
Feld, who grew up in Queens, New York, wrote that he wanted to get involved in the commemoration for the first responders who put their lives on the line that day as well as for the people who continue to be affected and die from illnesses as a result of the attacks, wrote Feld. Feld worked as an intern for Answer the Call, an organization that provides financial support and additional assistance to families of New York City first responders who died on 9/11. He worked with families of victims and served as an advocate for them.
“We vow to never forget, as we should honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice,” wrote Feld.
The university held an event on Sep. 9 that discussed the interdisciplinary implications of the events following the attacks on Sep. 11, according to the events page. The academic panel discussed the events following the attacks from a political and psychological lens, according to the page. The speakers discussed the topics of bias, perception, terrorism and international policy in the wake of Sep. 11, according to the page. The university made the event available to community members both in-person and online via Zoom.
The academic event was co-hosted by the Politics and Psychology departments. The speakers included: Angela Gutchess (PSYC), Professor of Psychology, Jennifer Gutsell (PSYC), Associate Professor of Psychology, Jytte Klausen (POL), Lawrence A. Wien Professor of International Cooperation and Gary Samore (POL), Professor of the Practice of Politics and Crown Family Director of the Crown Center for Middle East Studies.
An experiential panel was held on Sep. 10 that featured faculty members who discussed their personal experiences from Sep. 11, according to the events page. Faculty members who were in or near New York City on Sep. 11 shared their stories from that day and how it impacted their lives, according to the page. The university made the event available to community members both in-person and online via Zoom.
The experiential panel was sponsored by the office of the president. The speakers included: Neil Swidey (JOUR), Professor of the Practice and Director of the Journalism Program, Amy Singer (NEJS), Sylvia K. Hassenfeld Chair in Islamic Studies and professor of History and Carol Osler (IBS), Martin and Ahuva Gross Professor of Financial Markets and Institutions in the Brandeis International Business School (IBS).
The university held commemorations on Sep. 9 and Sep. 11 in partnership with the Center of Spiritual Life. The event acted as a moment of reflection for community members to remember those lost on Sep. 11. The event was held in person in the Fellows Garden.
The commemorations were co-sponsored by the Center for Spiritual Life, the Student Union and the Graduate Student Association.
On September 11, 2001, four airplanes were hijacked by members of Al-Qaeda, an extremist group, according to the 9/11 memorial page. Two of the airplanes were flown into the Twin Towers—One World Trade Center and Two World Trade Center—in New York City. The third plane was flown into the Pentagon in Washington D.C. The passengers aboard the fourth plane were able to take back control of the plane and crashed it into a field in Pennsylvania, according to the page.
From the attacks, nearly 3,000 people were killed, resulting in the largest loss of life from a foreign attack on American soil, according to the page. The first plane hit One World Trade Center (North Tower) at 8:46 a.m., and Two World Trade Center (South Tower) was hit at 9:03 a.m. The next attack was on the pentagon at 9:37 a.m..
On the 10th anniversary of the attacks, the 9/11 Memorial at the World Trade Center in New York City was dedicated to the victims, according to the memorial page. It opened to the public the next day. The 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York City was opened to the public in 2014. The Flight 93 Memorial, the memorial for the plane which crashed into the field, opened in 2011, according to the memorial page.
