The Uses of
September 11

The terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001, killed three thousand people and left the American nation reeling. Millions spent that morning and the days that followed glued to their television sets, watching repeated images of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and scattered wreckage in Pennsylvania. Police and firefighters flocked to the Pentagon and Ground Zero to aid in rescue and recovery efforts. Rumors began circulating immediately about various terrorist groups or nations that might be responsible, and it was quickly discovered that the terrorist organization al-Qaeda, under the direction of Osama bin Laden, had carried out the attacks.

Americans reacted to the events in various ways, and official responses were immediate. The Bush administration launched the war on terror, which included the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, passage of the Patriot Act, and the invasion of Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the attacks, more than eighty thousand Arabs and Muslims living in the United States were fingerprinted and registered with the federal government. President Bush, believing that Saddam Hussein was linked to both the terrorism and al-Qaeda, launched an American invasion of Iraq in the spring of 2003.

Individuals and communities nationwide responded with an outpouring of grief. Throughout the nation, communities held ceremonies, candlelight vigils, and marches. Impromptu memorials appeared in New York City and Washington, D.C., and photos of the missing filled subway stations and parks. Many businesses and individuals prominently displayed American flags as people searched for ways to find meaning in the attacks.

The following documents present different responses to September 11, from official responses to cultural commentary on the events. As you read these documents, consider how the authors understand the attacks in the larger international context. How do the authors’ different backgrounds influence their responses? In what ways do these documents speak to one another?