9/11 cannot be forgotten

By: Cassie Seibert and Ben Lahmann

​It has been 20 years since our nation suffered its worst attack on domestic soil. When it occurred, it was seen as one of the most significant tragedies in U.S. history. While 20 years has not changed that sentiment, time has seemingly lessened the significance of that day and we tend to forget how the tragedy truly affected Americans and American values.

Originally, on the first day after the attacks, Americans came together to grieve. But today people are still attacking one another, and politicians are using 9/11 to push their own agenda and tear others down. In reality, they should be mourning. Many people want to just “move past” 9/11; while it's always good to not dwell on certain events, they should never be forgotten. Like any event in history, it is still important and has shaped generations to come.
      
Social media has also impacted the way we cursory glance at the events. Back when the event was still fresh and something that had just merely happened, people most likely visited the Web sites and read about it in the newspaper. However, with the increasing popularity of social media today, people will just repost something about 9/11 and move on. Mainly, younger generations who weren’t alive when the initial attacks took place will do this.

They don’t understand the effects as well as people who did experience it. So, instead of it being a memory to them it is more of a piece of history they learn about once a year for one day then forget about for the rest of the year. 
    
It shouldn’t be this way though. If teenagers were really taught how this affected society they could really understand why this was so hard for people to move on from for so many years. With recent events regarding terrorism, this should definitely be seen as something more important. It should be seen as something that can still happen today. Because that is the truth; while more precautions have been taken since that day, it doesn’t fully get rid of the risk of more terrorist attacks in the future. 

Any time we take moments to mourn the loss of all the people who died tragically that day, we also pray for the many more who were injured or lost loved ones. We remember the brave first responders who fought that day to save others as the buildings crashed down. We need to remember how, despite a tragic day, Americans came together to help one another to show that we are still a unified nation. Even when tragedy strikes and innocent lives are lost, we still come together to heal one another despite our perceived differences.

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