A 2-part set of posts on the 25th Anniversary of 9/11 - PART I (News and Issues)

So here is my plan for the next 2 days of posts:

• Part I - current news and issues (maybe "hot buttons"?) about the 25th anniversary

• Part II, classroom resources and lessons related to 9/11, to teach it in a history context/classroom

I just attended an NCSS webinar last night on ways to teach about 9/11 twenty-five years after the event, and it was a good example of the issues teachers might face.

On the one hand, there was a decent amount of material available for teachers to use, and a lot of discussion time was devoted to the mental conflict between teachers who often remember 9/11 as an event during their own lifetimes ("Where were you when the planes hit the towers" - personally, I was getting ready for a school day in my middle school classroom that didn't proceed the way ANYONE expected. As a side note, it turned out I had the only TV in the entire school with an antenna to access local news channels). By the time I retired none of my students were alive at the time of 9/11, and that is certainly true today - it is a history event more than current events, and not one that many teachers will "get to" in any kind of normal curriculum.

On the other hand, much of the content didn't get covered in as much detail as it might have because there were so many "rabbit holes" teachers wanted to go down - both during and after the webinar. Some of those I will address below in this first portion as potential "hot buttons":

• Are the people who carried out the attacks "terrorists" or "freedom fighters"?

• Did the U.S. "deserve" what it got because of its' actions in the Middle East?

• Would public reaction long-term have been different if it had been a Democrat vs. Republican president in office?

• Would public reaction long-term have been different if we hadn't gone into Afghanistan and Iraq?

• Should first responders in NYC and DC be remembered in the same way as war veterans?

• How should we hold people accountable for their support of the attack? For example, why is a military trial of accused mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three ​co-defendants still not happening until 2028?

And as with a lot of things in our country currently, some discussion near the end revolved much more around "analogies" to 9/11 and events in the news today, as political views on both sides started going back and forth. Going to try to avoid that here - I just want to supply links and resources, not tell you what to think or teach!

Topic #2 - Memories of the Event 25 years later

This is just going to be a list of stories/links I am aware of, either because they have been released early OR because previews have been posted (like on YouTube). Again, this section is going to focus more on the impact of 9/11 on people (or groups of people), not on retelling the events of the day itself:

"25 Years After 9/11, a Portrait of Muslim Americans", Pew Research Center, Sep 2026, https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2026/09/03/25-years-after-9-11-a-portrait-of-muslim-americans/

"'25 Years of Thinking About 9/11' by Peggy Noonan", Wall Street Journal, Sep 2026, https://www.wsj.com/opinion/25-years-of-thinking-about-9-11-c95cc9c7

"9/11 Reunited | Official Trailer" (preview of a video streaming live), National Geographic Channel, Aug 2026, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1nVy-puZzU

"Douglas Murray: 9/11 and the War on the Truth" (Lies and conspiracy theories about the attacks have become mainstream over the past 25 years. The future of the U.S. may depend on refuting them), The Free Press, Sep 2026, https://www.thefp.com/p/douglas-murray-911-war-on-truth

"How 9/11 Shaped My Life (Stories of Resilience 25 Years Later)" (a collection of stories from survivors), Time Magazine, Sep 2026, https://time.com/article/2026/09/03/how-9-11-shaped-my-life/

"Majority in U.S. Still Say 9/11 Permanently Altered How People Live", Gallup Inc., Sep 2026, https://news.gallup.com/poll/714062/majority-say-permanently-altered-people-live.aspx

"A quarter-century later, 9/11 still shapes Pentagon worker's life", USA Today, Sep 2026, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/09/06/911-pentagon-susan-lukas/91372074007/

"Sept. 11 Shaped Their Lives, but They Don’t Remember It", New York Times, Sep 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/07/nyregion/born-after-9-11-young-adults.html

There is a LOT of data available in the stories and lessons I am linking today and tomorrow, so I don't feel a need to repeat them here - there is no way to judge the importance of an event by how many people died. What I did want to include with the picture above is a single image of the devastation at Ground Zero after the attacks, and images of the memorials in New York City, Virginia, and Pennsylvania to the people who died on September 11, 2001. I will link resources from each of those sites in tomorrow's post (since each has educational materials)

First, A Quick Refresher on the Event Itself

This is a good summary of the events of 9/11 in a single infographic, created by Visual Capitalist (with all credit going to them). I know the resolution is not great for a website like this, so if you want a larger version go to their website at https://www.visualcapitalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/911-terrorist-attack-timeline-full-size.html

Topic #1 - Current Issues around the 25th Anniversary

It is easy to assume that 9/11 is now "old news" to Americans with short attention spans 25 years later, but there are several current events stories we will probably hear about connected to the anniversary. They include:

• The Fire Department of New York released a landmark report this past Tuesday detailing the long-term health effects of the September 11 attacks on firefighters, EMTs, paramedics and other rescue and recovery workers, marking nearly 25 years since the terrorist attack. The report, produced by the FDNY World Trade Center Health Program, draws on decades of research and medical monitoring and examines the health of first responders, officers, civilians and retirees who participated in rescue and recovery operations at Ground Zero. Firefighters stayed at Ground Zero for weeks after the attack and kept inhaling the toxic chemicals. According to the World Trade Center Health Program, more than 9,000 people have died from illnesses linked to the attacks and their aftermath, including 600 firefighters - a toll that now exceeds the number of people killed on September 11, 2001. Here is a copy of the report if you are interested - https://www.fdnywtcprogram.org/assets/25thAnniversaryWTCHealth.pdf

• Five men are facing charges in a United States military tribunal at Guantánamo Bay of aiding the 19 men who hijacked passenger planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center, Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field on Sept. 11, 2001. The charges, which carry the death penalty, include conspiracy, murder in violation of the law of war and terrorism. The defendants are accused of directing or training the hijackers or helping provide them money or assistance with travel. They were captured in 2002 and 2003, held incommunicado in a secret C.I.A. prison network and transferred to Guantánamo Bay in September 2006 for trial. The prosecution and defense have been litigating what evidence the U.S. government must provide defense lawyers and what evidence is admissible at trial, notably F.B.I. accounts of what the five defendants said in individual interrogations at Guantánamo in 2007, months after their arrival from years in C.I.A. custody, when they were subjected to so-called “enhanced interrogation techniques.” Before the coronavirus pandemic, a judge had set Jan. 11, 2021, to begin jury selection in a military trial that was estimated to last a year. Now the latest presiding judge has announced plans to begin the trial in 2028. Here is a New York Times summary of the trial issues - https://www.nytimes.com/article/september-11-trial-guantanamo-bay.html

• Twenty-five years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks transformed the nation’s security apparatus, Congress is taking a new look at the intelligence reforms created in their aftermath and whether they are equipped to confront the threats facing the U.S. today. The House Intelligence Committee met Monday in Shanksville, Pennsylvania to release a bipartisan Committee report examining the implementation of the 9/11 Commission Report recommendations released in 2004 after an investigation into the failures that preceded the attacks. The committee's review comes as lawmakers seek to determine whether the intelligence system built in response to the attacks of Sept. 11 is prepared to prevent the threats of the next generation. The review highlights an increasingly complex threat environment in which national security risks extend beyond traditional terrorism. It also identifies China as the nation’s top counterintelligence threat, pointing to Beijing’s espionage efforts as well as its growing artificial intelligence and cyber capabilities. Here is a link to the report - https://intelligence.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/2026-08-20_PSCI_v2.pdf

Topic #3 - New (and some returning) Video Specials for the 25th Anniversary

Not sure most of this would be for classroom use, but perhaps background knowledge if you didn't live through it. Plus some of the new specials are focusing (in a similar way to what I did in Part #2) on how peoples' lives have been changed or impacted in the 25 years since the attacks. Again, this is just going to focus on either videos that have already been released, specials that have already aired, or specials that have been announced already . . .

"'9/11: United We Stand – 25 Years Later,' A powerful story of hope and healing led by Michael Strahan" - focusing on how sports, music, Broadway, the media, and comedy helped a grieving nation begin to heal. Broadcast originally on 9/1, rebroadcasting on ABC on 9/11/26

"102 Minutes Inside The Towers" - focusing on what people inside the buildings saw and heard as events unfolded around them, with new first-person interviews. Broadcasting on the History Channel on 9/11/26

"Daughters of 9/11" - focusing on whether the man accused of masterminding the attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM), will ever face justice. Broadcasting on CBS on 9/11/26

"I'm Coming For You, Brother (Full Episode) | 9/11: One Day in America", National Geographic, Sep 2026, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bseXTZ9ZwHY&t=11s

"Turning Point: Generation 9/11" - explores the impact of the attacks and their aftermath on the generation that witnessed them during their formative years, including those whose own families were directly affected. Initially released for streaming on Netflix beginning 9/2

"Turning Point: 9/11 and the War on Terror" - this five-part Netflix series traces al-Qaida's roots and the American response to the attacks, including the wars and changes at home. Originally released in 2021 for the 20th anniversary; once again available on Netflix

"Voices of 9/11: Stories From Those Who Witnessed America's Darkest Day" - brings together four incredible and harrowing stories from one of the darkest days in American history, American Veterans Center, Sep 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdQsqiBgoCk

YouTube Playlist of collected 60 Minutes episodes related to 9/11, 60 Minutes and CBS News, https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI1yx5Z0Lrv64UHjdq56Uu6nRhGHPOXqp

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