9-11 Attacks

The American Legion Post 635 Honor Guard in Normal hosted a remembrance for several dozen spectators outside the McLean County Museum of History in downtown Bloomington on Wednesday morning, marking 23 years since the Sept. 11 attacks in New York City, Washington D.C. and rural Pennsylvania.

The 9/11 terrorist attacks is being remembered with a variety of events. Many of them, such as the Firefighters Memorial Ceremony on Saturday at Miller Park, were solemn affairs.

Two decades after the 9/11 attacks on American soil, the Twin City community came together on Saturday for the 2021 Red, White and Blue Rally to honor lost that day, and to recognize military veterans and first responders who have kept the country safe since then.

Many Illinois State University students were too young or not born yet during the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. These young adults only came to know about the attacks through education and societal influence. It's the second generation to feel trauma from 9/11.

WGLT's Jon Norton explains what he was doing on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001.

Of all the many shifts and twists in U.S. society since the twin towers fell 20 years ago, none may be quite as profound as in the aviation industry. Now 35 years into his career, Central Illinois Regional Airport Director Carl Olson was an airport director on 9/11 as well, in upstate New York.

The Normal Public Library has opened an exhibit that includes an oral history from McLean County residents recounting their 9/11 stories 20 years after the attacks.

Some people have moved beyond the anguish of 9/11. For others, the pain is raw and new two decades later. For many 9/11 is history that has shaped the nation. Others believe it continues to echo in our national image and policies.

Two decades after the 9/11 attacks, the nation has not yet deeply reconsidered the national security response to the tragedy and whether the rights of citizens have eroded, according to the ACLU of Illinois.

Where were you when it happened? That is what Normal Public Library is asking McLean County residents as the 20th anniversary of 9/11 approaches. An immersive exhibit is on public view in the library’s gallery from Sept. 7-30.