It was a national disastor, an act of terrorism, and led directly to war. American citizens, and people around the globe, sat stunned in front of their televisions as they watched two of the biggest pillars of western society come crumbling to the ground.

The September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center was an event that scarred generations, both young and old, as almost everyone knew someone who was affected by the tragedy.Since that time, more lives have been lost fighting the battle overseas in pursuit of Osama Bin Laden and the Talaban. When it was discovered that the mastermind behind the scheme, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, was an A&T alumni, students who were affected by the attacks were once again forced to deal with a difficult situation.

While things on campus may have settled down, and a new breed of Aggies is here, the effects of Sept. 11 is still no less powerful than it was eight years ago.

The A&T Register interveiwed a collection of students to ask them where they were when the attacks took place, and to describe how it affected them. Even some of our own staff members could still remember exactly what they were wearing and what time it was when they find out.

While we may all come from different backgrounds, and different corners of the nation, we all share a common story as an Aggie community.

These are the stories of our fellow students.

“I was in 5th grade in Newport News, Virginia. I remember I was in my math class when our teaching assistant ran into the classroom and pulled my math teacher Mrs. Gray to the side to tell her what was happening in New York while the rest of the class was oblivious to what was going on outside the school. Being ten year olds we didn’t understand what was going on, we were just confused and lost.  When the teacher had told us that two planes hit the T`owers, I started to worry about my dad because he was in New York, catching a train that day. When I arrived home my mother explained what was going on and being the religious person she is, she began praying a lot. I didn’t really get what was happening so I just went outside and played with my friends. When you’re a kid, you don’t really worry about stuff like that.” 

–Jamal Featherstone

“I was in Liberty State Park which was in Jersey City, New Jersey. You could see 9/11 and the Statue of Liberty from there, you could see everything. I was in the 5th grade and I didn’t know what the hell was going on. I’m from North Jersey and we were on a field trip but then we had to go back to school and we were rushed back on the bus, even though we were nowhere near the twin towers.” 

–Laron Wise

“I was sitting in 5th grade English class. All I remember was my teacher going crazy and telling us what had happened. [The class] and I was so confused why the teacher was going crazy and in so much shock because everything was so fine in the day up until that point.  The only thing I can remember what was on people’s minds was that they were worried, that they were making sure that they’re families were alright in New York. We were just 5th graders, we didn’t understand what was really happening in the world. We didn’t know that people from other countries wanted to blow us up for no reason.” 

–Adrian Gray

“When the planes hit the  Twin Towers, I was sitting in my 8th grade history class when all of a sudden, all  of my teachers  left the room.  All of us were sitting and wondering what was going on until my teacher turned on the television and we saw the wreckage of what used to be the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. I remember being really nervous for the rest of the day because no one knew where another plane might crash. Also, I had family in New York and I was worried about how they were doing. My mom and I spent the rest of the night watching the news  and just thinking how something like this could have happened. and by who. For a while, I never wanted to get on a plane for fear of something happening.”

–Stacie Bailey

“On September 11, 2001, I remember I was 12 and I was in the 7th Grade. I was attending Neal Middle in Durham, NC. My teacher Mr. Martin, stop the class turned on the television so we could watch what was going on. Since most of us didn’t really know why the terrorist attacks happened and what they were about, Mr. Martin changed our lesson plan and we started studying the Middle East and all the aspects that surrounded the connected elements involved with the terrorists attacks. At the time I was so confused. I felt mournful of those who were lost, and  I also lost someone due that tragic occurrence. I wasn’t scared at first, because I was imperceptive to the issues and the ties that relate to complexity of the 9-11 Terrorist Attacks.”

–Micah Lindsay

“The day the towers were attacked, I was in my 5th grade class and all the teachers were receiving phone calls to turn off the TV’s and radios. So many of my classmates were leaving class and getting picked up from school. I never knew what happened until I reached home and my mom was sitting by the television crying and trying to call my father. She knew that on 9/11 he was scheduled to come back to New Jersey but he never did. We didn’t receive a phone call until later that night and both my sister, mom and I had a smile of relief on our faces. So many of the phones were dead in the Tri-State. At that time I just sat in awe wondering what was next to happened and when my father was going to come home.”

–Jennell McMillion 

• Dexter Mullins, Derek Lineberger, and Jolie Sanchez