Today marks the twelfth anniversary of 9/11. Maybe you think every story about 9/11 has already been told. But there are still narratives to examine. The explosions on September 11, 2001 continue to produce aftershocks — especially in South Asian American communities. Today we remember both the direct victims of 9/11 and those like Balbir Singh Sodhi, a gas station owner in Mesa, Arizona who was murdered after the attack in retaliation. Below you’ll find a collection of articles, photos and videos about 9/11 that continue the conversation.
1. “12 Years After 9/11: Still a Long Road Ahead for Equal Rights” by Manar Waheed, Policy Director, South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT)
As the years went by, I began to actively identify as a Muslim American and grew stronger in my conviction that no one has to hide who they are or what they believe in our country. Unfortunately, it has been challenging to hold onto this belief in the wake of the tragic events of 9/11. As we approach the 12th anniversary of 9/11 this week, it seems that the advice I heard as a young girl might be the message our government is sending youth today. [Huffington Post]
2. Buzzfeed’s “50 Powerful Images Of Humanity And Solidarity In The Years Since 9/11”
3. WNYC’s Arun Venugopal’s “Sikh Men & the Meaning of Turbans”
4. CNN’s “Since 9/11, Islamophobia legislated and enforced”
Throughout the past 12 years, government agencies and local law enforcement have often turned inward, eroding the liberties of ordinary, law-abiding citizens.
In the name of defending national security, they’ve fractured relationships with American Muslim communities and undermined the foundations of freedom on which this land was built.
Anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States has not only manifested itself through mosque arsons, assaults, murders and invariably hostile rhetoric from society’s extreme fringes. It has also become a permanent fixture of the very institutions that should provide safeguards against those things. [CNN]
5. 9/11 New Yorker Covers
6. Salon’s “Captain American in a Turban”
The idea originated with Fiona Aboud, a photographer based in New York City. For seven years she has traveled the country capturing stills for “Sikhs: An American Portrait” project. I’m an editorial cartoonist, who has been documenting the thrills and travails of real-life Sikhs in the aftermath of 9/11 through illustrations made on my computer touch pad. One of those cartoons, created for my first trip to Comic-Con, featured a turbaned and bearded Captain America. It made a three-dimensional spark in Fiona’s imagination.
I was going to be Captain America for a day on the streets of the Big Apple. [Salon]
7. Upworthy’s “A Boy Makes Anti-Muslim Comments In Front Of An American Soldier. The Soldier’s Reply: Priceless.”
Kishwer Vikaas is a co-founder and editor of The Aerogram. Find her on Twitter at @Phillygrrl or email her at editors@theaerogram.com. Follow The Aerogram on Twitter @theaerogram.
