On 9/11 we were home a handful of blocks north of the World Trade Towers when we heard the dull thud of something that might have been a loud truck accident. Of course that was not the case and moments later we were on Greenwich Street looking at the North tower with a smoking hole that resembled a bad cartoon version of Daffy Duck exiting through a wall. First thoughts: some air traffic controller is going to lose their job. Fifteen minutes later on that pristine September morning, we stood, completely stunned as a second explosion tore trough the 2nd tower.
The World Trade Center was a huge presence in our neighborhood and in our lives. When they went down there was of course, a huge vacuum and what struck me most in the moments following that insanely destructive act, was the incredible coalescing of the local community and the outpouring of compassion from the national and international community. Much of this got confused during the ensuing political response.
It has been a long decade of recovery and rebuilding and considering the state of downtown NYC at that time, it is truly remarkable that we have come as far as we have.
Here is a small sampling of the many Twin Tower memorial walls that sprang up in the five boroughs after 9/11 ...
all photos ©Ken Brown
