A reflection of the 9/11 attacks 20 years later and how it has changed our country.

By: Carlos Glick and Christian DiBuono

Twenty years ago today marks the day millions of American lives would be deeply impacted due the attacks on the Twin Towers and Pentagon on September 11th, 2001. 

As we remember the 20^th anniversary of this unfortunate day, it is important not only to remember the many innocent lives lost, or the many heroes that arose that day, but to remember how we responded as a nation and how this event has affected many Americans throughout the years.

We must remember that in response to the terrorist attacks on 9/11, President George W. Bush declared the “War on Terror”against Al-Qaeda, the terrorist organization responsible, and took part in creating the Department of Homeland Security to protect us from imminent threats. 

Operation Enduring Freedom, October 7, 2001 – December 28, 2014

In response to the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. army launched Operation Enduring Freedom on October 7^th, 2001 by bombing al-Qaeda and Taliban forces located in Afghanistan.

 As a result of the U.S. bombardment, the Taliban were removed from power and al-Qaeda had been seriously crippled.

On May 2, 2011, U.S. Navy SEALS launched a successful raid against al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks. 

Operation Enduring Freedom would officially end on December 28, 2014, although the U.S. military would remain present in Afghanistan until August 30^th of this year. 

Creation of the Department of Homeland Security 

On November 25, 2002, in the wake of security fears following the attacks on 9/11, Congress passed the Homeland Security Act. This legislation created the Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for preventing terror attacks, controls border security, and manages the flow of people and products into and out of the United States.

September 11^th has influenced America in so many ways. It has changed the way we view history in so many ways.

A majority of us either knew someone who worked in the towers, was one of the survivors or was one of the 2,606 people who died at the twin towers, either at the scene or later on from injuries, or the 125 people who lost their lives at the Pentagon or even the 44 people who lost their lives on Flight 93. 

To this day, September 11^th, has remained to be the deadliest terrorist attack throughout the history of the world. 

Millions of people around the U.S. have been largely affected with this one major event because we all know somebody, whether it be a family member, a friend, a friend of a friend. We all know someone who has either died in the attacks or who has been a survivor. 

This event has changed history. It has changed the way we see and view others as a whole. For people who were born within the past 80 years and who have lived through the attacks, it has been part of us and will hold a piece in our memory. 

This year, as we mourn the lives that were lost on September 11^th, let us remember that those 3,000 people are veterans to our country.