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Background Information
On September 11, 2001, the World Trade Center, also known as the Twin Towers, was hit by hijacked planes. A terrorist group called al-Qaeda purposely hijacked four planes; two of the planes crashed into the Twin Towers, and one crashed into the Pentagon. The fourth plane was believed to crash into the White House, but the passengers fought back, leading the plane to crash into a field in Pennsylvania. This plane is known as Flight 93. 2,977 people died, and thousands were injured during the fall of the towers.
The collapse of the Twin Towers had many effects on America and our way of life. One way it affects us is by changing our view of security, especially at airports. Passengers used to be able to walk right up to the gate without having to go through the rigorous process of TSA. Even the family could follow.
The rules were extremely light. Until the towers fell. Once the terrorist attack began, there was no going back to our original way of life.
Security was increased almost immediately. The creation of TSA (Transportation Security Administration), increased screening, banned items, and enhanced ID checks are just a few examples. Many people embraced the idea of more security measures, but others were concerned about how these changes were affecting their individual freedoms.
Many people approved of the tighter security, since they thought these actions were necessary to prevent another attack. People were permanently shaken by the collapse of the Twin Towers, and wouldn’t risk the chance to have it happening ever again.
Some people did not approve of these actions. They thought that the security was too controlling and that it limited their freedoms. Many thought that the security measures were a little too extreme. Of course, they wanted to ensure that something like this would never happen again, but they believed such strict measures didn’t need to be taken. In the end, the fear took over, and security became tighter than ever before. But what if the towers didn’t fall? Would security in airports even exist?
Societal Effect
Society would never be the same after 9/11. Would the changes that the collapse of the Twin Towers caused be reversed, or would life continue on a completely different path than one we might expect?
One of the more obvious changes is TSA. In the end, it most likely wouldn’t exist. Instead, everyone would be able to bring as many liquid items as they want. Even items such as scissors, which are now heavily prohibited, would be allowed on a plane without a second thought.
Before 9/11, people could bring items like scissors, sporting equipment, and even small knives. As long as it wasn’t a large weapon, anyone could bring it. If 9/11 hadn’t happened, these items would be commonly found on a plane.
It was also common for family members and friends to walk a traveler all the way to their gate. Instead of being in an airport for hours, waiting for your family member to get through security, it would take a matter of minutes for them to get off the plane. In this new world, airports would be a lot less crowded, for security would be a quick in-and-out job.
Another very noticeable change to our society would be that the World Trade Centers would still be standing. Never damaged or scarred from planes, the two skyscrapers would still be standing tall in the sky of Manhattan. For most, this is an impossible picture to imagine, but in a different universe, this would be their reality. However, most people forget that those two towers actually served a purpose. The World Trade Centers were built to increase trade between foreign countries. Once the towers collapsed, it took a hit on our economy and international trading. If they were still standing to this day, we might have better foreign relations and a slight boost in our economy. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the economic help it provided would be quickly washed down the drain, for the towers would no longer be in operation during the lockdown.
When the towers fell, many countries allied with us gave us gifts such as statues to help with our grief. The tear drop memorial is an example. Given to the United States by Russia, this statue was made to commemorate the victims of the attacks. Other gifts included a courtyard area given to us by Israel called the “9/11 Living Memorial Plaza”. If the towers were still standing, we wouldn’t have statues with countless names of those who lost their lives. Instead, we would have open areas where people could laugh, instead of crying for their loved ones.
As stated above, 2,977 people died in the attack initially. However, that doesn’t include any of the health problems that later caused many deaths. It is believed that over 6,000 people have died due to illnesses caused by the 9/11 attacks. Illnesses such as respiratory problems and cancer were some of the most common due to the amount of smoke after the collapse of the towers. With a staggering death toll of over 8,977 deaths from 9/11 or 9/11 related injuries, this terrorist attack truly made a lasting impact on America’s population. Our population could’ve added over 9,000 people if the towers were left standing. Now we are without 8,977 precious lives.
Sadly, after 9/11, many Muslim people were looked upon with distaste. Al-Qaeda was an Islamic terrorist organization, and many people blamed innocent Muslims for the collapse of the towers. As mistrust spread throughout the U.S., many people began to hate anyone who practiced Islam.
There were increased suspicions from the locals and even some of the authorities. There were also many acts of hate towards Muslims, like discrimination and threats.
After the initial shock of the 9/11 tragedy, most of the Muslim hate dissolved. However, some of the hate kept brewing. The PTSD of the attacks led many to continue the hate against anyone who was associated with the religion. Sadly, this still goes on today and is constantly a battle for the Muslim community.
Many immigrants of other cultures were also greatly discriminated against. America quickly tightened its borders and border security to stop immigrants from coming in, for fear that another terrorist attack could take place. According to Boston University Today, “14,000 individuals faced deportation.”
America’s diversity level could be so much higher if none of this had ever happened. Cultures would come together in more unity, without blaming each other for some else’s mistakes. Immigration into the United States would be a much less rigorous process. Innocent Muslims would be seen as friends, instead of some people thinking they are a danger. Our population would flourish throughout the streets, with busy squares and filled apartment complexes. Two towers would be standing in the center of Manhattan, looking upon the beautiful city. There would be areas to walk happily instead of watching someone place flowers for a dead friend. We would take a flight without a second thought. A child could make a craft with a pair of scissors on a plane without being seen as a threat. Fear wouldn’t lead our days anymore, we would.
9/11 Stories To Remember
“On the morning of September 11, I was off duty and scheduled to go in that night. When the city called all off-duty firemen into work, I responded from home on my bicycle, for I didn’t know if I would be able to get into Manhattan by car or train. About halfway there, I hailed down an ambulance, and to my surprise, he was able to drive me to my firehouse. (I worked in Ladder 12 at the time.) Ladder 12 was assigned to respond after the second plane hit the south tower. We grabbed as many tools: hooks, axes, and halogens as we could and headed down to the trade center; we arrived at 11:30 AM. We were on the west side and could not believe the devastation of all the destroyed firetrucks and building debris we saw. From that moment on, we were searching all throughout what is known as the pile [a large and dangerous amount of debris from the Twin Towers]. Once we found somebody in charge of the chaos, we were assigned to search the Deutsche Bank building. We teamed up with another fire company and then searched every other floor all the way to the top. Once we left the bank building, we headed back to the pile and searched, hoping to find the guys from our firehouse, along with any survivors. Before we knew it, the sun had set and was starting to come up again. We had no idea when we would head back to the firehouse.”
-Charles Biondo
“I was a junior in college. I slept in ‘cause I didn’t have class that morning. My friend came and woke me up. He said, ‘Turn on the TV, something just happened.’ When I turned on the TV, I saw the second plane hit the tower. In college, I was dating a girl named Lisa. Lisa went to New York City the night before; she went to the Yankee game with a bunch of our friends from home. The game got rained out, they were supposed to stay in downtown Manhattan, and go to the city or whatever shop. I thought they stayed downtown, so that morning I was calling Lisa, but all the phones were out, you couldn’t call anybody. A guy that we were friends with, who went to the game, went home because they got rained out. He was supposed to take the day off, but he didn’t; he ended up going into work. He worked in the second tower, and we never saw him again. His son was the first child born to any survivor of 9/11. Lisa did not stay down there; she ended up coming home. The person responsible for the attacks was named Osama Bin Laden, and his nephew went to my college at the time. So that morning, the FBI and Secret Service showed up at my school, went into the dorms and grabbed this kid, put him in the car, and left immediately. Our college was shut down for the rest of the day. I also knew a girl from middle school who ended up being on the plane that went down in Pennsylvania (Flight 93).”
-Austin Griffing