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9/11 in the American Context

Min Xiang Lee

Soka University of America

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The incident that occurred on the 11th of September, 2001 has been written in the history

books as one of the biggest tragedies in American history. On this momentous day, individuals

claiming to be part of the radical Islamic group Al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial airplanes -

two headed for the World Trade Center in New York City, one towards the Pentagon in

Washington D.C, and one crashed in Pennsylvania. The most iconic and devastating

consequence of the hijacks was the crash of Flight 11 and Flight 175 into the World Trade

Center, killing close to 3,000 people in the towers and within the vicinity (History.com, 2015).

The after effects of these hijacks were the heightening of security screenings at airports, a

declaration of “war against terrorism” by then President George W. Bush, a heightened sense of

patriotism and an increase in distrust towards the Islamic community in America. This essay

assignment will explore the different visual texts which include a newspaper headline, a

photograph exhibited in the 9/11 Memorial Museum, and a public art installation by English

artist, Banksy, to determine the perception of 9/11 in the American context.

The first piece of visual text in our exploration is the headline of The New York Times a

day after the tragedy, which reads “U.S. ATTACKED. HIJACKED JETS DESTROY TWIN

TOWERS AND HIT PENTAGON IN DAY OF TERROR” (Figure 1). Established since the

early 1800s, The New York Times holds a worldwide reputation as a reliable and independent

news source. Adding to its credibility, the paper has also been awarded 114 Pulitzer Prizes,

more than any other news organization in the world. Therefore, the editor-in-chief’s decision to

print the headline with the bold words “U.S. ATTACKED” was a surprise. The headline was

printed on 12 September 2001, only a day after the hijacks and crashes, without any party

claiming to have committed the hijackings. Furthermore, there was no known motive for the

hijacks at that time nor were there any reports of further plans of hijacking in other parts of the

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country. Hence, the headline was used to incite fear amongst the American public, even people

living in different states and thousands of miles away from the crash sites. The implication of

this news report was the heightening of American patriotism to stand up against terrorism and

the heroization of first responders who lost their lives at Ground Zero. This is evident in

President George W. Bush’s launch of Operation Enduring Freedom (History.com, 2015) and the

multiple exhibition pieces in the 9/11 Memorial Museum, such as an ambulance, a fire truck, and

an American flag pulled from the rubble.

One such exhibit at the 9/11 Memorial Museum that shows both American patriotism and

the heroization of first responders is a photograph by Thomas E. Franklin depicting firefighters

raising the American flag at Ground Zero after the collapse of the World Trade Center (Figure

2). According to CNN, this iconic image has been widely reproduced in the form of postage

stamps and has raised over 10 million US Dollars for the families of first responders killed or

permanently disabled while at Ground Zero (Ahlers, 2005). The picture is composed vertically,

showing three firefighters looking up at the American flag being raised on a diagonal flag pole.

Generally, only the firefighters and the American flag are colored while the background of

rubbles is greyish; this contrast shows life and death, life being color and death being the lack of

color. Moreover, the firefighters have slightly confused expressions on their faces as can be seen

with their squinting eyes. It looks as if they are questioning the validity of the American flag.

The diagonal flag pole and the confused looks on the firefighters’ face is evident that the 9/11

incident is a wakeup call for America to reexamine its values and principles. Therefore, to many

this photo might be patriotic and an honor to the victims of 9/11, but this photo is actually

questioning the very essence and foundation that America is built upon.

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The next piece of visual text about the 9/11 tragedy is a public art installation by Banksy,

a British artist who overran New York City with one piece of art a day for a month. During this

period of a month, Banksy created a tribute piece that resembles the 9/11 incident on a sidewalk

(Figure 3). The silhouette charcoal art of the World Trade Center and its surrounding buildings,

combined with an orange daisy to represent the crash is simple yet recognizable to local New

York residents. There is nothing complex about this art installation, but Banksy’s decision to

place it lower than eye level and to use charcoal is an interesting one. By placing the artwork

lower than eye level, people who want to take pictures of the artwork will have to crouch or

kneel in front of it, making them look like they are praying or paying tribute (Figure 4).

Moreover, Banksy also chose to use charcoal to create his artwork, which is temporary and can

be washed away by rain, showing the impermanence of pain and loss; New York City will be

able to rebuild itself as time goes by.

Having explored these three different visual texts, it can be inferred that the 9/11 incident

has been manipulated by news and government agencies to further their agendas of war against

terrorism while art is still largely independent from political motives. It is truly surprising how

President George W. Bush was able to coordinate and launch Operation Enduring Freedom just

barely a month from the 9/11 incident. This grand scale operation would not have been possible

if the American public do not have a reason to legitimize U.S. troops entering the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Thomas E. Franklin’s photograph perfectly describes the after effects of the 9/11

incident; the confused looks on the firefighters face show that they do not know what America is

anymore. Americans are giving up their privacy and freedom in the name of security against

terrorism. America was built upon the democratic values of liberty, equality, and justice, which

are now just mere words taught in schools. As an individual foreign to New York City, Banksy

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went with a simple artwork but still conveyed his message of remembrance and impermanence

across.

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Appendix

Figure 1

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Figure 2

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Figure 3

Figure 4

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Reference

Ahlers, M.M. (2005, July 27). September 11 stamp raises $10.5 million. CNN. Retrieved from:

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/07/27/september11.stamp/

History.com. (2015). 9/11 Attacks. Retrieved from: http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks