Sept. 11

It was difficult to understand the magnitude of the moment that morning 8 years ago. During a normal day of high school, caught in the doldrums of a repetitive daily schedule, word started spreading that the World Trade Center had been bombed. Students crowded around television sets in the cafeteria and we soon understood that it had been a plane crashing into the first tower, and the United States was under attack. Noone will forget the horror of that day, the helplessness felt by an entire nation. Many have discussed the post-9/11 era in America in terms of seemingly perpetual wars against extremists, in terms of nation-building and the spread of democracy, and in terms of a post-modernist sensibility of loneliness gone wild with the added loss of invincibility. I can't say I have personally felt that my world changed because of 9/11 or that living in my country feels significantly different. Certainly, having elected Barack Obama following George W. Bush in the post-9/11 political universe, it's difficult to talk about a new set of social priorities or a novel, hardened worldview brought about by that now famous act of violence by Al Qaeda.

However, what 9/11 has presented is the opportunity not only for our nation to resolve to live up to its core values, but for people to resolve to live up to their individual core values. While wandering through the old town of Cartagena looking for a place to eat dinner with friends, a Colombian asked me if today (now yesterday) is a day of remembrance in my country. I had no idea what he meant at first, but he pressed on, asking if the 11th of Sept. has significance. As I had a moment to hit myself in the head, and put on my U.S. hat instead of world traveler hat for a minute, I remembered the courage of thousands on that day - those who fought back, who saved lives...They are an inspiration. This traveling experience is valuable because as I think of all that I have seen just in Cartagena - the woman the other day offering her body for money to feed her children, the young man whose reply to being asked what he did in the past week was that he sold cocaine and weed, all the people struggling in this city and feeling hopeless - I'm reminded of all the structural changes that need to occur, but also the inspiration that people need to live up to their core values. One reason black people here, and other Afro-Latin Americans throughout this continent, disproportionately struggle with poverty, unemployment, hunger, and ill health, is because they lack those models or events upon which to build a sense of self-worth.

9/11 is tragic to think about, but I'm so proud that I live in a country where differences and divisions can be put aside to display a basic moral, human character in the most important of moments. If some of these black Colombians knew the story of the palenques (escaped slave communities) or Afro-Colombian politicians who laid the foundation for the national character of all Colombians, if these facets of history were in fact something the nation actively celebrated, I can't help but wonder if some of these people in Cartagena would be inspired enough to change their life trajectory...