09/12/2020
September 11, 2001, is a day we all remember. We know where we were. We know how we felt. We were scared. We were frightened. We were angry. We do not forget. We watch remembrances on our television channel of choice.
We rallied on that day. We watched in horror and in hope that all would survive, knowing it wouldn't be true. We watched survivors walking miles in shock. Dusty, injured, damaged, scared. We knew their loved ones waited in panic for news of their survival.
Later we learned the names or heroes who sacrificed themselves to save many others. Policemen, firefighters, and "average" citizens who helped first.
They were white, black, brown, asian, red, straight, LGBTQ, republicans, democrats, environmentalists, wall street capitalists, immigrants, 10th generation Americans, legal and illegal aliens, and everything else.
We didn't care who they were. We hoped for their survival. We prayed for their well-being. We cheered for survivors and mourned the lost. We still do.
We lived through trauma and came out on the other side. We came together as U.S. and World citizens to denounce hatred, to denounce terrorism, and unify around humanity.
None of that meant we need to think the same way, vote for the same people, support the same causes, or cheer the same beliefs. But it did remind us we have more in common than not. It should remind us our differences are important, but not at the expense of anyone.
I invite you to remember the unity of that day and the months which followed. I invite you to be skeptical, not cynical. I invite you to be inclusive, not exclusive. Above all, I invite you to reach out with inquisitive warmth, not divide with apathetic antagonism. We've proved we have the ability to unite in kindness.
