New York. Arizona. Colorado. Georgia. Illinois. Memorial services and commemorative events are being held across the entire United States of America as September 11, 2008 marks the seventh anniversary of the day that changed the world forever. The day that terrorists attached the twin towers of the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, murdering 2,752 innocent souls.
The world has never forgotten the events of that day, and the memory is forever etched in the minds of millions of people. From longer waits in airport security lines to the loss of a feeling of safety, citizens around the world have experienced changes since that awful day and are pausing on September 11 to remember and mourn those whose lives were lost.
But the American people are not going to let those lost lives be forgotten. In Sun Lakes, Arizona, for example, people of all faiths gathered in a local Methodist church to participate in a service of remembrance. But there was another goal to the activity and that was to promote unity among all people and to build bridges between all cultures in an effort to forge world peace. A similar service was held at a Jewish Temple in Tucson.
Escondido, California hosted a memorial softball tournament, while in Layette a patriotic rally was planned. Palm Springs held a music event showcasing local high school bands and entertainers. In San Diego, presentation of the colours, pipes and drums, and honor guards accompanied the reading of the names of those who were lost. Members of the local fire departments were acknowledged.
In New York, a “We Remember Walk” honored victims and their families as well as celebrated the survivors and responders. In a unique ceremony, the City of Long Beach held a tribute to the armed forces, firemen, police, emergency medical services, construction workers and clean-up crews, and all the unsung heroes who came together that day, to a flying of colourful kites. The goal of the event was to foster unity, hope and healing.
And of course, in New York City itself, a commemoration ceremony was held at Zuccoti Park adjacent to the World Trade Centre site at Liberty Street between Broadway and Church Streets. Family members descended to bedrock during the ceremony, reading the names. In a sombre touch, family members were paired with international students who represented the 91 countries who lost individuals.
In Connellsville, Pennsylvania, tribute was paid to the passengers and crews of American Airlines Flight 11, United Airlines Flight 175, and United Airlines Flight 93 that were taken over by terrorists and crashed into the twin towers, the Pentagon, and a farmer’s field near Shanksville.
Earlier in the week, the Pentagon Memorial at Arlington was opened to family members and their guests to give them the opportunity to experience the Memorial in private conditions. And on September 11, all campaigning for the presidential and vice-presidential races ceased for the day and President Bush held a vigil on the lawn of the White House at dawn in remembrance.
And in a true show of unity, towns and cities around the world have also held memorial services, in schools, at city centre cenotaphs, in churches, and in homes. The horror of the events of 9/11 were felt, after all, by everyone.
A sombre and reflective offering of photos has been produced by the The Record (Bergen County, NJ), and can be seen at www.groundzerospirit.org. Today several construction projects are underway at Ground Zero where the twin towers fell, including the spectacular 1776-foot tall Freedom Tower, which is expected to open in 2011, and which has been designed with advanced engineering techniques to avoid any possibility of progressive collapse.
And what of the scoundrel who has been blamed for the terrorist attacks? Osama bin Laden, leader of the Islamist network of organization Al-Qa'ida, and alleged terrorist leader, if he is still alive, has evaded capture and may be still living in southern Afghanistan, under the protection by the Taliban regime of Kabul.
But the spirit of the American people has remained strong and they have risen above the ashes of September 11 to a renewed sense of unity and determination.
