HW 3
"I'm coming for you brother, I'm coming for you". These were the words spoken over the emergency radio to a fireman trapped in Stairwell B of the collapsed North Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. 9/11: One Day In America, is a 6 part documentary series on Hulu that details the events of the terrorist attacks that shocked the world and left America in mourning. Each episode is focused on a different aspect of the day, all coming together with live footage and survivor interviews to paint a terrifying and haunting picture of what it was like to be in the World Trade Center and survive. From first responders to volunteers to people who lost their loved ones, each survivors story is told in entirety and in unflinching detail. "I never knew the sound of a body hitting the pavement after jumping from a 110 story window, but now I can never ever get that sound out of my head", said an anonymous NYC firefighter.
As someone who was alive during the events of 9/11, but was too young to remember life beforehand, I feel that this documentary series was very important for me to watch. I am a student of political science and have always viewed the events of 9/11 as a catalyst for foreign policy and war, and viewed it from a government reaction standpoint. While I understand the government's reaction and their actions moving forward, it's very rare that I think about 9/11 from a civilian standpoint. I watched footage only once in my high school experience, and it was watered down to shield us from the darkest and most disturbing elements while still trying to get us to understand the gravity of the situation. Now, 5 years on from viewing that footage, I can say that nothing could have prepared me to see what was shown in the series. According to my parents who watched it unfold live on TV, this series is the closest thing they have seen to being the same experience as watching it live.
In one word, this series was traumatic to view. It shows every last detail of the devastation, from bodies hitting the pavement, to the sounds of planes crashing, to the last words from the passengers who bravely fought back and crashed United Flight 93 in a field in Pennsylvania. I had to stop watching many times just to get my emotions in order, and often times I would have to rewind because I was crying too hard to ingest new information. While I did not personally know anyone lost in 9/11, I felt as if I was living and feeling the pain and experience with each survivor as they told their stories. While some stories were so traumatic I felt physically ill, some inspired me to a new extent. United Flight 93 in particular inspired me. A group lead by 4 men made a hasty plan to overpower the terrorists and take control of the plane. One man in particular, Todd Beamer spoke some of the most famous last words on that day. In a recording found in the planes wreckage he is heard praying with the passengers immediatley before taking action before saying "Let's Roll". Because of Todd and the other passengers, countless lives were saved because of their bravery and sacrifice, as that plane was thought to be heading for the US Capitol building.
Overall, this documentary is difficult to watch, and is traumatic to take in, yet is vitally important for people like me to see. I don't remember a pre 9/11 world and this series helped me to understand how this event shaped the world I live in.
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