Note to readers: Some descriptions in this story are graphic. Please use caution when clicking on links, particularly those within sensitive paragraphs. Though the images are soul-searing, they breed understanding and empathy. Within the span of about eight hours on October 7, 3,000 Hamas terrorists tortured, raped,
Read more →
Twenty-two years ago, New York City firefighters climbed the stairwells of the Twin Towers, clad in heavy gear, knowing they might not leave the burning buildings alive. Documentaries and news reports about 9/11 have cited survivors who passed the ascending firefighters: They moved into the smoke and
Read more →
Amidst the chaos of lockdown policies that disrupted education across America, Miriam Shaw and Julie Woolslayer met at a school-board meeting in 2021. Their shared concerns about curriculum transparency and medical freedom for students led to a friendship. Soon, they joined with other moms to advocate for local
Read more →
Last fall, my family and I visited the Flight 93 Memorial Park in Shanksville, Pa. My son, an airplane enthusiast and student of 9/11 history, suggested it. Everything about the park is a reminder of September 11, 2001—from the Tower of Voices to the Wall of Names
Read more →
Two decades have passed since 9/11, and I still haven’t seen a sky as blue as it was on the East Coast that morning. The crystalline backdrop stood in stark relief to the day’s senseless horror. September 11 unfolded into a day of contrasts: sheer evil and
Read more →
I was twenty when I first set foot in Manhattan. It was March of 1994. I joined my cousin and friends on a fast tour of New York City: an afternoon in Central Park; an evening at The Metropolitan Opera, watching Franco Zeffirelli’s rendition of La Bohème;
Read more →
Today I’m launching my first installation of Friday Fun Facts. It’s a concept my son’s fifth-grade teacher uses. At the end of each week, she offers each student a chance to share one remarkable fact. This activity captivates children and adults. My first fact hails from Jim
Read more →
On Sept. 11, 2001, I was a Washingtonian, living near the Pentagon and working as an education reporter. As I darted to the subway, the sky glowed a crystalline blue. Later, everyone from D.C. to New York exchanged stories about the otherworldly brightness of that morning. How
Read more →On Sept. 11, 2001 I lived in Arlington, Va., a few miles from the Pentagon. When terrorists slammed a jetliner into the famed fortress, I was riding the subway to work, temporarily unaware that my city and my country were under attack. At work I huddled with
Read more →