Sept. 11, 2001, is a day that will be remembered not just in American history but internationally forever. Considering that terrorists hijacked four passenger jets and proceeded to unleash chaos on the United States, trying to forget such a day is impossible.
Twenty years later, the day still brings back painful memories, even to those who did not know any of the nearly three thousand victims.
“One of my coworkers told me the United States was being attacked. At first, I thought another country like Russia was attacking our big cities,” Aaron Phillips noted when recounting his initial thoughts after hearing about the first jet, American Airlines Flight 11, hitting the North Tower.
Meanwhile, for Tamra Phillips, the day started out like any other before she got the news. “I was at home with my thirteen-month-old twins getting settled into our morning routine. Disney Channel was on, and we were waiting for ‘Rolie Polie Olie’ to come on when I briefly turned to a network channel. No one had called to tell me anything was going on, so we were in our own little world for the first fifteen minutes before I turned the channel,” she said.
When describing her reaction to what she saw, she said she felt “complete and utter confusion,” noting that, by the time she turned the channel, “the first plane had already hit one tower and smoke was billowing out. Everyone was saying it was an accident but something just seemed ominous about it. Then, the second plane hit and my heart sank.”
After the attacks, it was obvious that the world on Sept. 12, 2001, would be a lot different than what it was a couple of days before. Many, in fact, would say that the world has not and will never return to what may have been considered normal before 9/11.
Quite possibly the defining moment of the Bush administration was its response to these attacks. This response can be found in what many call the War on Terror. From that point on, the U.S. has held an ongoing military campaign targeting terrorist groups in the Middle East in the name of preventing more attacks on American soil.
The War on Terror has been subject to a lot of criticism, particularly in recent years, and the Biden administration’s action of pulling out of Afghanistan can be seen as a response to the war’s growing group of critics.
Another key post-9/11 action largely associated with the Bush administration — and isn’t without its share of controversy — is the increase in mass surveillance through the passage of legislation like the Patriot Act. This was done with the goal of preventing more acts of terror in the country. Despite this attempt, Sept. 11 unleashed a harsh reality that still brings about fear.
“It was the first time the whole world saw that you could strike within the U.S. and fill fear throughout it,” Tamra Phillips said. “I never imagined anything like that could happen, so I didn’t really worry about it. Now that I know what they are capable of, it is even scarier.”
Going back to the time she learned of the attacks, Tamra said that “there is a defined line between those minutes before turning that channel and after. I actually cherish those minutes before I found out because, for those fifteen minutes, we were living as nothing had happened. Fifteen more minutes of playing and laughter while others were coming to a standstill in shock and disbelief … I still cherish those fifteen minutes with my babies, before I found the world had gone crazy.”