A nation remembers

Rebirth seen for America

The unthinkable terrorist acts brought the nation together in a burst of patriotism and sparked an urgency for many to display American flags on their homes, cars or themselves.

Rather than fracture the unity of our country, as some experts surmise was the terrorists' goal, the horror and tragedy of the attacks on the United States caused Americans' feelings of love for one another and pride in their country to surface.

As the first anniversary of that day of infamy approaches, many people are pausing to reflect on the tragedy.

"The term is healing, not healed," said Martha Wengert, a professor of sociology at Antelope Valley College. "I would say that we take a couple steps forward and several steps backward."

The attacks opened rifts between Arab countries and America that the nation is still dealing with, Wengert said.

Unlike the bombing in Oklahoma City by home-grown terrorist Timothy McVeigh, Sept. 11 involved an outside terrorist group and brought war to American soil. That day has been compared by many to the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese that pulled the United States into World War II.

Pearl Harbor claimed the lives of 2,390 Americans, most of them servicemen. In comparison, more than 3,000 lives were lost in the rubble of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in a Pennsylvania field.

That the Sept. 11 attacks came from an outside terrorist group helped to bring people together and hasten the healing, Wengert said.

"There's still an awful lot of grief out there," she said. "People are still very, very much in the healing process."

The healing continues in part because "every time you travel, you are reminded of it by the heightened instances of security," Wengert said.

One of the positive aspects to emerge from the attacks was Americans' level of generosity, Wengert said.

"(There was) a tremendous outpouring of compassion and generosity just across the country," she said, citing as an example the United Way Sept. 11 fund.

People were so generous with donations that there ended up being so much money it quite difficult to manage logistically, she said.

Aaron Wied, a communication specialist with the Greater Los Angeles United Way, said just over $1 million was raised locally for victims of the attacks.

Another positive Wengert sees is that, despite the devastation of the attacks, "we got to business ... (and did) what had to be done to carry on. We saw that we can do it."

Despite some exceptions, Wengert said the attacks reaffirmed "that we are one country despite our differences and our diversity."

Mary Kelso, a licensed clinical psychologist and teacher of child development and parenting classes at the college, works with the Employee Assistance Program as a critical incident debriefer to help employees of airlines and banks work through traumatic experiences such as plane crashes or bank robberies.

Since Sept. 11, Kelso has been counseling airline employees, mostly from United and American, many of whom suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder.

"They're hoping for some healing after ... Wednesday," Kelso said.

Some of the flight attendants Kelso counsels will be in the air on the Sept. 11 anniversary.

"(Sept 11. is) an important day for them," Kelso said. If the planes land where they are supposed to, "it would strengthen their healing."

Since the attacks, one of Kelso's clients has become very pro-active with passengers, looking every passenger in the eye as he or she boards the plane, she said.

"They're just very attentive to what's going on in the plane," Kelso said.

While most of her clients believe the day will pass with no events, a few fear something else will come to pass, though not necessarily in the air.

"We have collective grief that's larger than this country has known in a long time," Kelso said.

The first year after the loss of a loved one is a year of anniversaries and vivid memories, such as remembering where you were at a particular time with someone who has died, she said. As time passes, the memories may not be as vivid or as painful.

Although the country was headed for an economic downturn prior to the attacks, Sept. 11 shock waves created an even bigger economic rift that broke businesses and hurt airlines, putting many employees out of work.

The Sept. 11 anniversary falls within the holiest of holidays in the Jewish community, Rosh Hashana, or the Jewish New Year, which began at sundown Friday and continues for 10 days.

During the 10 Days of Awe, members of the Jewish community reflect on who they are as individuals, ask for forgiveness from any sins during the past year and vow to be better people in the coming year.

"That's the wish we have for everyone," said Natalie Angrisani, congregation president of Temple Beth Knesset Bamidbar.

As for what the nation has learned from the attacks, Rabbi Rick Schechter said that, as a country and as individuals, we have learned not to take anything for granted.

The United States is part of the larger world community, he said, so we ought to appreciate ourselves and our neighbors and work together to make our community a safer place for everyone.

We are all faced with the prospect that you can't take everything for granted, Angrisani said.

"Remember to turn to your children and say I love you and that you appreciate them," as well as your spouse and friends, she said.

Dr. Bassam Hadaya, chairman of the Islamic Center of North Valley in Lancaster, said that since Sept. 11 he has seen a lot of support and interest from the community in Islam.

"We denounce (the attacks)," Dr. Hadaya said. "We think that this is a deviation of true Islam. A few Muslims, they do bad things, (but) it should not reflect on the whole of Islam."

Since the attacks, Hadaya said, more people have come to the center looking for information on Islam.

"We have more people asking us to give them books about Islam ever since," he said. "A lot of people came in and listened to what we talk about (and) they asked us to talk to them."

He added that if someone gets his or her information about Islam only from the media, he or she may not get the whole idea.

Since the attacks, the Islamic Center has had two new converts and has seen the return of others who had not been to the mosque in a while. However, some of those who were going to the mosque before the attacks have not returned.

He related a story he heard comparing Islam, Christianity and Judaism as three daughters who fight occasionally but also work hand-in-hand.

"What we hope is that American Muslims who live in the United States show they are good citizens and are respected as good citizens, and that people are judged on their good deeds and service to their community," Hadaya said, and "not judged by people who are doing bad things outside of this area."

The healing process can be hampered by what Hadaya called misgivings of Islam in the media.

"Some people seem to say our enemy is Islam (or) our enemy is Muslim," he said. "We don't like to hear that because we know that Islam is not the enemy of the West."

Islam, Hadaya said, is a religion of the middle. Muslims believe in one God but also believe in the prophets of Judaism and Christianity who came in to fulfill the same message but at different times and different people.

Suhel Qawasmeh, vice chairman of the Islamic Center, said that to be a Muslim one must believe in the all the prophets and the messages that came before and after.

"Everybody would like to see their way as the best way," Qawasmeh said. "If you don't believe in the books and the messengers that came prior to Mohammed you are not a Muslim."

"Islam is not a closed religion," Hadaya said. "It's an open religion. If somebody wants to know about Islam you just read the Koran and it's there. There's nothing secret about our religion. We worship only one God and that's the same God who created everybody."

Archbishop Bernard Price of Lancaster's Mar Thoma Orthodox Church believes the country is recovering "extremely well as a nation."

The country's immediate response to the attacks was to unite, he said, and "it's done a very good job of that."

Price sees the biggest obstacle to recovery as education.

"Getting Christians and Jews to realize that Muslims are in fact people of the book and not some kind of strange animal that wants to kill itself just to kill others, they would find that there are many, many similarities."

Being afraid of something that is unknown to you is a very human response, said Price, who is president of the Antelope Valley Interfaith Council. He suggested those who want to learn more about the Muslim faith either read the Koran, talk to a Muslim or attend a meeting of the Interfaith Council.

But the healing process will take time, he said. "I think (the country is) ready for a bereavement group."

Many people's reactions to the attacks are similar to those involving the loss of a loved one, Price said. The shock and horror of the attacks cause the brain to shut down; over time, an individual gradually learns to deal with them.

The country went numb, but has begun to come out of it quite nicely, Price said.

"I hope that it is enough to make us realize that there is only one God and that mankind is one family," he said.

Price believes one of the positives to come out of the horrific losses of Sept. 11 is a heightened awareness among countries throughout the world.

"Globally the civilized countries are much more alert and sensitive to criminality of any kind," he said. "It's shocking how many countries are now on the alert and double-check what goes on in their airplanes. I'm very grateful that globally the awareness level has come up."

Although security for air travel in the United States has increased, Price believes the country should model its security measures after Israel, which has some of the most rigid security policies in the world.

While many Americans treasure the freedoms and conveniences afforded them, Price believes most people would not object to stricter safety controls over air travel.

"If they were not (willing to accept tighter restrictions), then 9-11 was for naught," he said. "It should have raised their awareness to what's real out there. I would hope that the horrible reality is real to them.

"We're on earth to learn and when we refuse to learn then great things are put there for us to learn through," Price said.

Uploaded September 8, 2002