What remains of America’s 9/11 memory – and what is disappearing

The memory of 9/11 in America is fading and shifting due to demographic changes, inconsistent school curricula, and political polarization, according to a Jerusalem Post article. Over 100 million Americans born after 2001 or too young to remember the event now view it as history, with a YouGov survey showing 37% of 18-29 year olds learned about 9/11 in school, and 6% had not heard of it. Only 14 states explicitly require 9/11 in social studies, leading to varied teaching approaches, sometimes focusing on Islamophobia or US foreign policy rather than the attacks themselves. Political divisions are also evident, with a 2021 Washington Post-ABC poll finding 46% of Americans believe 9/11 changed the country for the worse. Media reporting has also evolved, with some outlets using softer language like “lost their lives” instead of “killed in attacks.”

“We're teaching a generation of students now for whom 9/11 is history, and for some, it's ancient history like the Vietnam War or the Korean War or World War II,” Joshua Rovner, an associate professor at American University, said in USA Today.

The article concludes that while memorials and names persist, the country risks outsourcing memory to anniversary rituals, potentially obscuring the fact that nearly 3,000 people were murdered in a terrorist attack by al-Qaeda.