story10976.xml
Title
story10976.xml
Source
born-digital
Media Type
story
Date Entered
2004-09-12
911DA Story: Story
On September 11, 2001 I was in an 8th grader at Washington Irving Middle School. I was in my third period English class when the school administrator got on the loudspeaker and announced that the World Trade Center and the Pentagon had been hit by an airplane. I really didn't have a first reaction because before then I had never heard of the Twin Towers, so them being hit by an airplane didn't register as a horrible tragedy to me. However, when we I went to my 4th period we watched on the television the burning towers and then the Pentagon, and then I realized how bad the situation really was.
I heard the word kamikaze being thrown around, and I thought that was a strech and people were just thinking the worst. At the time I had no idea of terrorism and I was under the impression it was all an accident. My 4th period teacher let us watch for a little bit but then tried to go on with class and the lesson like nothing happend. Everyone was getting picked up early from school and we thought there would be an early closing but that wasn't the case. It was unusual to me that when I got home my mom who works in Washington DC, was home before me. When I walked in my mom said that my mom, grandma, brother, aunts and uncles had all called to make sure everything was OK.
Today my life has been affected by the attacks because everytime I want to go to a Redskins game I get patted down and my purse gets searched. Everytime I get on an airplane I have to be there about an hour an a half ahead of time because of all the check points. Everyone's life has been affected due to the Patriot Act because our privacy can be invaded by the government. Slowly our liberties are being taken away, but the government says it will fight terrorism so most don't argue the cause. Students are allowed to carry cell phones in school after September 11.
No other attacks can compare to the devestation of September 11,2001. However, I would say that the attack on Pearl Harbor another day in infamy would be the closest.
I heard the word kamikaze being thrown around, and I thought that was a strech and people were just thinking the worst. At the time I had no idea of terrorism and I was under the impression it was all an accident. My 4th period teacher let us watch for a little bit but then tried to go on with class and the lesson like nothing happend. Everyone was getting picked up early from school and we thought there would be an early closing but that wasn't the case. It was unusual to me that when I got home my mom who works in Washington DC, was home before me. When I walked in my mom said that my mom, grandma, brother, aunts and uncles had all called to make sure everything was OK.
Today my life has been affected by the attacks because everytime I want to go to a Redskins game I get patted down and my purse gets searched. Everytime I get on an airplane I have to be there about an hour an a half ahead of time because of all the check points. Everyone's life has been affected due to the Patriot Act because our privacy can be invaded by the government. Slowly our liberties are being taken away, but the government says it will fight terrorism so most don't argue the cause. Students are allowed to carry cell phones in school after September 11.
No other attacks can compare to the devestation of September 11,2001. However, I would say that the attack on Pearl Harbor another day in infamy would be the closest.
Collection
Citation
“story10976.xml,” September 11 Digital Archive, accessed December 20, 2025, https://911digitalarchive.org/items/show/10784.