12 SEPTEMBER 12, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Teaching the lessons of 9/11 to the future
For the fi rst time, public schools
across New York state offi cially
observed on Wednesday the 18th
anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks with a moment of silent
refl ection and classroom discussions.
We’re sure that, in the years since
that day of infamy, individual schools
had their own way of memorializing
the events of that late summer morning,
unforgettable to anyone who
witnessed what occurred.
But formal observances of 9/11
were codified into law by Governor
Andrew Cuomo, who signed
on Monday an approved bill sponsored
by two of Queens’ finest
lawmakers: state Senator Joe Addabbo
and Assemblywoman Stacey
Pheffer Amato.
Why is this law so important, you
ask? Because nearly two decades
removed, the lessons of 9/11 must
be taught to generations of young
children who have no idea of the pain
infl icted by the attackers, the heroism
of those who worked to save lives and
the incredible unity that fi lled our
country aft erward.
It’s easy to put up a picture of the
EDITORIAL
former Twin Towers of the World
Trade Center on a social media
page accompanied by the hashtag
#NeverForget. The events of 9/11,
however, are more signifi cant than
can be conveyed in a social media
remembrance post.
Our country was attacked in an
orchestrated suicide mission by
terrorists who hated the American
way of life, and took violent action
to try and change it. They killed
3,000 Americans of every race,
color, creed and ethnicity in their
pursuit of autocratic ideals and a
divided nation.
President George W. Bush described
the terrorists best in an
address to Congress just nine days
aft er the attacks. “They stand against
us because we stand in their way,”
he said, adding that they followed
“in the path of fascism, Nazism and
totalitarianism,” and in time, would
eventually follow it to “history’s unmarked
grave of discarded lies.”
We suffered horrific destruction
on Sept. 11, 2001. The terrorists
crashed planes and destroyed
buildings, but they didn’t crush
our spirit.
All of the police offi cers, fi refi ghters
and EMTs demonstrated that in
the fi rst moments of the attack on the
World Trade Center’s Twin Towers.
They ran into the burning buildings
as others ran out.
Hundreds of these heroes paid
the ultimate price when the towers
fell; hundreds more are paying all
these years later, as they suff er from
illnesses related to the long hours
they spent at Ground Zero in the
recovery eff ort.
Americans rallied around each
other in the face of the evil destruction.
We unfurled fl ags everywhere,
prayed together, mourned together,
honored sacrifi ce, donated blood, volunteered,
thanked the fi rst responders
for their eff orts, and demanded
justice for all those we lost.
Our children, and their children,
need to know that 9/11 wasn’t just a
day of horror. It was a moment when
our country, while dealt a destructive
blow, brought out the best in itself.
The acts of bravery, resolve, unity
and patriotism demonstrated in the
hours and days following the 9/11
attacks serve today as valuable lessons
that will help guide New York
students in the years to come.
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ESTABLISHED 1908
Co-Publishers
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA SCHNEPS
Editor-in-Chief
ROBERT POZARYCKI
Classifi ed Manager
DEBORAH CUSICK
Assistant Classifi ed Manager
MARLENE RUIZ
Reporters
EMILY DAVENPORT
MARK HALLUM
CARLOTTA MOHAMED
MAX PARROTT
BILL PARRY
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