The immediate response of the American People was a surge in volunteering efforts to help the victims and their families, and a demand for revenge on whomever attacked. President Bush almost immediately announced the “War on Terrorism”, which targeted bringing Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda to justice. The unfortunate side effect of the need for justice was the increase of hate crimes. While most bonded together, comforting each other in this time of National Tragedy, others targeted Middle Eastern looking people and people thought to follow Islam. Sikhs, who are in no way connected to Islam, were commonly attacked because they wear turbans.
New York Daily News Photographer Susan Watts was on her way to photograph the New York Mayoral Primary Elections when she heard a plane had hit the World Trade Center. She was amongst those running away from the towers as they turned from pillars of steel to pillars of smoke, photographing the entire process. She narrowly escaped as the building collapsed, and eventually avoided physical harm. Watts is currently still working for New York Daily News.
Description: This copy of Soldiers magazine, dated September 2001, was recovered from the wreckage of the Pentagon.
Context: Being a U.S. soldier has always been a dangerous job. The Pentagon is the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense and houses over 16,000 military employees. Despite the magnitude of the September 11 attacks—125 Pentagon employees were killed and some 140 others were injured—work continued at the Pentagon as cleanup and reconstruction commenced.
Robert Rathe is a contemporary photographer based in Virginia. During the fall of 2002, he had the opportunity to photograph pieces of steel that had once been part of the World Trade Center complex in New York City. The steel had been brought to the National Institute of Standards and Technology for their investigation into the collapse of World Trade Center buildings 1, 2 and 7. These abstract photographs represent the artist’s attempt to comprehend how steel that had once been strong enough to support the tallest structures in New York were now twisted, charred and broken.
from Marco Grob's portrait series "Time Beyond 9/11: Portraits of Resilience", commissioned by "TIME" magazine in 2011 for the 10th anniversary of 9/11; framed photograph; Benamar Benatta is an Algerian who was seeking asylum in the U.S. after 9/11 attacks, was detained in U.S. custody for 1,760 days; portrait of a man depicting him from the shoulders up, very dark, wearing a dark collared shirt; quote from Benamar Benatta "I still hear the keys of the guards, the ones they used when they came to my cell to wake me every half hour. I still the keys when I'm sleeping. I check the windows and doors many times before I got to sleep."
Robert Rathe is a contemporary photographer based in Virginia. During the fall of 2002, he had the opportunity to photograph pieces of steel that had once been part of the World Trade Center complex in New York City. The steel had been brought to the National Institute of Standards and Technology for their investigation into the collapse of World Trade Center buildings 1, 2 and 7. These abstract photographs represent the artist’s attempt to comprehend how steel that had once been strong enough to support the tallest structures in New York were now twisted, charred and broken.