As the tenth anniversary of 9/11 draws near, I’ve been thinking long and hard about what to post about it on this blog.
And you know what?
All I can say is I’m worried.
No, it’s not travel fears that are keeping me up at night.
And I’m not anxious about the possibility of more attacks here and elsewhere in the world.
Well, not any more anxious than I am about earthquakes, hurricanes and other catastrophes that are out of our control.
What’s got me worried is the impending media onslaught and how it will affect my family.
In addition to the news coverage, there are 40+ specials, documentaries and other shows planned. Projects by Steven Spielberg, National Geographic, Paul McCartney. There’s even a Nickelodeon program for kids, that aims to explain what happened on September 11, 2001.
You Don’t Have to Watch TV to Commemorate 9/11
Let me be clear – As an American I get that this is a national tragedy that has made an indelible mark on U.S. history. One that will be revisited every year.
But as the wife of a Turkish man and mom to two bi-cultural kids, I worry.
Why? Because my husband is Muslim.
Okay, so we may not be a “traditional” Muslim American family (whatever THAT means).
- We don’t fast for Ramadan.
- We don’t worship at a mosque.
- And no one wears a burqini in our house.
In fact, my son recently told me he’s Hindu. (Now THAT’s a blog post in the making!)
So, no, we don’t fit the “typical” image of the Muslim-American family that marketers, pundits and Ryan Seacrest put out there.
But that doesn’t make the inflammatory language and Islamophobic slurs that get tossed about these days any less hurtful.
Why Choosing Your 9/11 Media Diet is Important
Recently, Nicole Neroulias wrote
“It’ll be a balancing act for journalists to cover the emotions of the 9/11 anniversary: without sacrificing the facts, they will also have to maintain some responsibility for the effects of publicizing the inflammatory language and images that factor into the occasion.
Yes, balance would be nice. But I’m not counting on it.
Instead I’m taking a cue from blogger Kelly West of CinemaBlend. In an e-mail that was quoted in a recent CNN article she wrote, “How much coverage we expose ourselves to and how we want to acknowledge the anniversary is our choice.”
How to Have a Peaceful 9/11
Participate in a community walk, like the free, family-friendly and apolitical 9/11 Interfaith Unity Walk in Washington, DC, where you can visit different houses of worship and religious institutions, listen to renowned interfaith speakers, and learn about faith traditions you may not be as familiar with.
Visit a Peace Pole, a four- or six-sided monument that displays the message and prayer “May Peace Prevail on Earth”, usually in different languages. In 1955 Masahisa Goi conceived of peace poles in response to the bombings on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Today, there are over 200,000 monuments in over 200 countries. Can’t find one in your area? Then take a virtual tour of Peace Poles around the world.
Walk a labyrinth or an outdoor sanctuary where you can reflect and meditate on what 9/11 means to you. One of my favorites is the rooftop labyrinth at the American Psychological Association near Union Station in Washington, DC. Click here for a list of public and private labyrinths around the world.
Wishing you peace, whatever you chose to do this September 11.
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You’re so right, Karen. It’s just a matter of people making these types of interactions happen. With all the conflict and tension in the world these days, we need a lot more opportunities to break bread together.
In one American town I lived in, a Protestant and Catholic congregation would get together for a potluck every year. In another town I lived in, my church, with a predominantly white congregation, started to celebrate with another church, with a predominately black congregation, every MLK Holiday. I think there is no reason joint events between churches and mosques couldn’t happen everywhere. Breaking bread together is the single greatest way to bring each other together.
Hello Justine,
Thank you so much for this initiative of yours. I have been so discouraged by the media hype of the 9/11 10th anniversary. It trivializes Americans and leaves us swimming in a backwash of prejudice and self-centeredness. I love your ideas about honoring the day quietly and seeking small ways to show that we value diversity, different languages and cultures.
You might be interested in checking out the website of the Eastern Mennonite’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding. (www.emu.edu/star) EMU has been running a STAR program (Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience) that has grown from 9/11 to include Haiti, Northern Ireland, Southern Sudan where people are rebuilding their lives after great tragedies. And not turning the process into a reality TV show either.
Hi Terri and Liz, Thanks for visiting and commenting. Terri, the shrimp boil sounds lovely. Thanks for sharing your poignant honeymoon memories on your blog. Interesting to read that you were in Haiti on 9/11. I know other people who were out of the U.S. at the time and they have commented on what it was like to experience the events from abroad. Liz, I love the photos on your blog. Maybe some day I’ll be able to feature photos of my own on this blog. It’s definitely on my bucket list. Your post about navigating politics (in all its guises) really resonated with me. In our house there are definitely issues that we’ve come to a stalement on and so we have decided to “agreed to disagree”.
I want peace on 9-11!
THANK YOU for this great, funny, clever and poignant post.
I have been thinking and wondering and even a bit worrying about 9-11, and I wrote about it today on my own blog – so I thought I would share it here. I hope you don’t mind! http://slowly-by-slowly.com/2011/09/07/of-ataturk-obama-and-navigating-u-s-politics-as-a-couple-post-9-11/
As for our plans for 9-11 – visiting American family! Be well!
I’m going to the annual “shrimp boil,” sponsored by St. Paul Lutheran Church in Colville, WA, which has a peace-loving minister and congregation…I don’t go to church, but attended a Quaker church in Oregon as a child, and am committed to peace. I’ve just posted my September 11 memoir at:
http://atouchoftarragon.blogspot.com/2011/09/remembering-september-11-2001.html
This is a really interesting and great idea. We already feel inundated with all of the media coverage of 9/11 and have been asked to participate as the token Muslims at at least 3 different community events thus far. I am choosing to be at those events that will truly make a difference and not where we’re seen only as a figurehead. My biggest question is how my 7 year old son will react when it’s brought up at school. He wasn’t born and in a 99% non-Muslim environment I worry about the messages he’ll be getting