Today’s REVStaffing blog – in recognition of the tenth anniversary of the events of September 11, 2001 – was compiled and written by our manager for advanced social media and blogging, Deb Rose, with input from several members of our staff.
Today we live in – and countless numbers of us have grown up in – what’s known as the “media age.” For many of us, electronic media has informed and shaped our lives and our world views. Do you remember watching televised footage of John Kennedy’s assassination? The Martin Luther King, Jr. assassination? Bobby Kennedy’s? Were your 1960s dinners served with seemingly endless footage of the conflict in Vietnam? Were you riveted to the television when Neil Armstrong took the first stroll on the lunar landscape?
The occurrences listed above are, for many Americans, little more than events chronicled in the canons of American history and on film. But for virtually every adult alive in this nation today, the events of September 11, 2001 are a testament to both the power and the incredible endurance of the media in the modern American landscape. As you spend time on this tenth anniversary of the tragic events of September 11 surfing the Internet and watching cable television, we urge you to seriously consider exactly what those events mean – today – to you as an individual and to America as a nation.
Think first about your own memories of that day. Here are paraphrased excerpts of three members of our REVStaffing team’s memories. They are reflective of some of humanity’s very best instincts:
“I worked in the advertising department of a local newspaper, and I had lived in the New York City area. Our paper had an Associated Press wire, so we saw things about eight minutes before they hit the public media. Many of those images, due to their graphic nature, were never released to the public, and they haunted me. Three weeks later, I attended a Giants game in New York City. I was struck first by the altered skyline of the city, then by the number of first responders in attendance at the game. When we had a moment of silence, you could literally have heard a pin drop. It was a beautiful way to remember those that we had lost, and cherish the memories that we had.” Debi, Tech Guru
“The attacks happened while I was in the car, listening to an audio book, on the way to the bank. The bank had TV monitors on; some people were crying while others explained to me what had happened. It was only days later that I remembered that there was an Indian woman, wearing a sari, in my line. There were African-American bank employees. There were South Americans cleaning offices. In other words, I shared the experience with a whole mix of America.” Mercedes, Transaction Coordination Manager
“I was working in Atlanta and was in the office early. Someone rushed into our suite and announced that one of the Trade Center towers had been bombed. We raced to another office where a television was on; I remember watching in shock and astonishment and thinking, “Dear God, all those people.” We all had some connection to New York; the office closed and I went home. When my husband arrived, we began calling family on Long Island. Several cousins were police and fireman who were working as first responders. My mother in law drove a school bus on Long Island, and told us that every child on her bus and been affected or suffered a loss of some type that day. The pain of the children was immense, and over the following weeks she became a face of comfort and stability in their lives. In the years following, I have baked cookies and taken them to local fire stations, an sponsored Sunday School classes honoring local volunteer fire stations. It is a lingering, deep hurt – and yet, there is so much pride in the fact that so many heroes were born of that tragedy. God bless our country and the brave men, women and children who were lost that day.” Deborah, REVStaffing CEO
Think too about the fact that September 11 unfortunately brought humanity’s worst instincts to the surface, too. The media has inundated us with two immutable facts. First, too many Americans learned too quickly and without question to equate patriotism with blind government obedience. And second, others too readily embraced despicable xenophobia toward Muslims and people of Middle Eastern descent. Unjust and unfair racial and religious stereotypes came to shape the perceptions of far too many of us.
Even in the age of virtually spontaneous media dissemination of all things good, bad and ugly, ten years is hardly enough time for a true historic assessment. Again, we ask that you think hard about, and reflect seriously upon, the events of September 11, 2001. It may take a moment; it may take a week. Use that time to reflect upon – and resolve to correct – past shortcomings. Let those of us alive today leave a legacy of hope, understanding and compassion; these are the true and abiding characteristics of a society where, in the words of Romanian columnist Cornel Nistorescu, “Freedom can work miracles.”
©REVStaffing, 2011