From 9/11 to January 6: A Generation Defined by Moments of Crisis

Swetha Sharma

I was 16 years old when terrorists hijacked two planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center. Thousands of people died, and the world changed forever. 

Growing up in New Jersey, September 11 was indeed close to home. More than 20 people from my county died from those tragic attacks. I will never forget seeing my classmates weeping - not knowing if their parents, who worked in or near the Twin Towers, would be coming home that day. 

When I went to college, I attended Drew University in New Jersey. The school's president was the former New Jersey governor - the late Tom Kean. Kean was a moderate Republican, the type of politician who was rare even in those days. He was kind, honest, and intelligent. So, it was no surprise that he was chosen to chair the bipartisan 9/11 Commission to investigate what went wrong. I was a student journalist on campus, and one of my prized possessions is a copy of the 9/11 Commission Report, signed by Tom Kean. The report found failures in our military readiness, intelligence gathering, and foreign policy. 

For millennials like myself, 9/11 became a singular defining moment of our generation. Our adolescence and youth were shaped by post-9/11 fear and racism, a weak economy, and political apathy. 

September 11 was the first time I felt a heaviness in my chest that I couldn't explain. It was a sense of dread that didn't go away for days, leaving me feeling like the country I call home was unwell. I felt that heaviness again years later - on January 6, 2020. And this time, I was older and wiser and recognized that when America is attacked, whether it's terrorists from another country or home-grown radicals, it weighs on an entire nation.

Swetha Sharma is a Decatur, GA resident.