This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001 (9/11), and the U.S. government’s subsequent “war on terror.” The papers in this symposium explore some of the ways that the government response has changed American life over the past two decades.
The 9/11 Attacks and War on Terror
On the morning of September 11, 2001, members of the terrorist group al Qaeda carried out four coordinated attacks after taking control of passenger airplanes. At 8:46 a.m., the terrorists flew American Airlines Flight 11 into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, located in lower Manhattan. A short time later, at 9:03 a.m., they flew United Airlines Flight 175 into the South Tower. Within hours of impact, both towers collapsed. In total, casualties in New York City related to the attacks are estimated at 2,753 people (New York Office of Chief Medical Examiner 2015).
Next, at 9:37 a.m., the hijackers flew American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon located in Arlington, Virginia. The impact, which caused the west side of the building to collapse, killed 184 people (including nonhijacker passengers and crew and those on the ground). United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers attempted to regain control of their airplane from hijackers after learning by cell phone about the prior hijackings. The crash resulted in 40 casualties of nonhijacker passengers and crew.
In addition to the aforementioned casualties, thousands of additional people were injured. Many suffered significant negative health consequences due to the inhalation of dust and toxic substances. The full, long-term health consequences are still unknown. The estimated cost of the physical damage in New York City-the World Trade Center and surrounding buildings as well as New York City infrastructure—was $60 billion (CNN 2020).
The attacks resulted in the U.S. government’s “war on terror,” an open-ended,
