In the days leading up to the 18th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 tragedy, the Daily Nexus asked UC Santa Barbara students and alumni to share their experiences and memories of 9/11 with us for publication.

The majority of the incoming class of 2023 were born in 2001, and some members of the class were born after the actual date of 9/11; most returning students – the classes of 2020, 2021 and 2022 – weren’t older than 3 or 4. As students who were too young to remember 9/11 but have grappled with its effects on society since, we wanted to hear how the tragedy affected students’ childhoods, educations and perceptions of the world.

Submissions have been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Sam Rankin / Daily Nexus

Melody ’20, psychology major:

How old were you when 9/11 happened? When do you first remember hearing about it? 

I was four. I remember hearing about it then but not understanding it at all.

How has 9/11 affected your life? Have you or your family been directly impacted by it? 

When I was in elementary school my parents didn’t want me to tell people my ethnicity (Middle Eastern) because they were afraid I would receive a lot of discrimination. I grew up being very afraid of telling people about my cultural identity. When I was young I would lie and say that I was European whenever someone asked where I was from. A little after 9/11 my cousin was denied a job because of his ethnicity.

9/11 led to an increase in Islamophobia in the U.S. and in the number of Islamophobic hate crimes reported to the police; have you or your family experienced Islamophobic hate, either growing up or at UCSB, post-9/11? 

Even though I nor my family are Islamic, we experienced some generalized prejudice as Middle Easterners. When I went to school as a young kid I received a few comments; kids would call me and my other Middle-Eastern friends “terrorists” in class. For me, it was more of a personal issue than something I dealt with externally every day. 

9/11 fundamentally changed the way the United States approached national security in several ways, including the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and a number of added security practices at airports. Has anyone around you (e.g. your parents) spoken about what life was like before 9/11? What was different, to your knowledge? 

I believe that the term terrorism has largely come to be associated with Islam. I know this is not the fault of 9/11 alone but a whole host of events leading up to it. While Islamic terrorist attacks had occurred, 9/11 created a deeply personal resentment against Muslims and Middle Easterners in America that had not existed prior. The nation became a scary place; my parents told me that the nation as a whole felt very safe living in prior to 9/11. The terrorist attack instilled a large sense of fear within the nation.

Is there anything else you would like to add? 

While 9/11 was an extremely tragic event and nearly 3,000 people lost their lives, the event was re-established as a platform for Islamophobia for many years by the media and administration.

Anna Wheeler ’03, history major:

How old were you when 9/11 happened? When do you first remember hearing about it? 

I was almost 17 and a junior in high school when it happened. I heard about it on the radio when my alarm went off when woke up that morning. A lot of people were really upset at school that day.

What have you learned in school about 9/11? Do you believe you were adequately educated about 9/11?

Honestly, I didn’t learn anything about 9/11 in school. The closest thing I did learn was my senior year at UCSB, when I had to take a Middle Eastern studies class for my history degree. I focused on American women’s history, so this course was very outside my realm. That course opened my eyes to the history of the region and how it affects our modern day world.

How has 9/11 affected your life? Have you or your family been directly impacted by it? 

To be honest, 9/11 doesn’t impact my daily life. I teach sixth grade, and I do like to emphasize treating everyone with respect regardless of if they look different than you. My husband was supposed to be in New York City that day (getting a fake ID), but for some random occurrence, he was not. A coworker was working in New York City during 9/11, and she was able to talk to some of my students about it. It absolutely boggled their minds that there were no cell phones to communicate.

9/11 led to an increase in Islamophobia in the U.S. and in the number of Islamophobic hate crimes reported to the police; have you or your family experienced Islamophobic hate, either growing up or at UCSB, post-9/11? 

I grew up in Davis, and I thought that community was a haven for celebrating diversity. However, Hasan Minhaj and I were in the same class at DHS, and hearing in his Netflix special “Homecoming” about how his family was targeted after 9/11 was horrifying to me. I honestly thought Davis was above that, and clearly, the lowest common denominator showed itself. I currently live in a red area of upstate New York, and I see Islamophobia frequently, sadly.

9/11 fundamentally changed the way the United States approached national security in several ways, including the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and a number of added security practices at airports. Has anyone around you (e.g. your parents) spoken about what life was like before 9/11? What was different, to your knowledge? 

Flying was such a different experience before 9/11. You could meet people at the gate, and it was not such a hassle. We could even stand in line in the forward cabin to go to the bathroom! It saddens me that with one devastating terrorist attack and some attempts to create airplane bombs with liquids that America has completely overhauled its flight restrictions. However, guns and assault rifles kill thousands of people on a scale that does not even remotely match 9/11, and yet we have no large-scale changes. As a teacher, I constantly consider how guns may affect my classroom, and I am never afraid of someone of the Muslim faith or the Middle East harming me.

Michelle McKee ’19, sociology major: 

How old were you when 9/11 happened? When do you first remember hearing about it? 

I had just turned three years old. I remember hearing about it ever since I can remember, but not the actual event.

What have you learned in school about 9/11? Do you believe you were adequately educated about 9/11?

The most I remember learning about 9/11 was in my AP Psychology class in my high school, when learning about PTSD. I can’t recall learning much about 9/11 in my elementary or middle-school years. I don’t know if I was so much “educated” about the events as I was made aware of what exactly happened. I would have liked to learn more about the impacts of 9/11 on the Muslim community.

How has 9/11 affected your life? Have you or your family been directly impacted by it? 

I was three years old and in New York (Long Island, an hour outside the city) with my younger sister and grandmother at the time of 9/11 while my parents were traveling in Europe. Both my uncle and grandfather were working in New York City the morning the Twin Towers were struck and are luckily alive today. However, the hours of uncertainty where the rest of my family were not certain they were alive due to the phones not working were extremely traumatic for them and still haunt them today. It was difficult especially for my parents, who were abroad on another continent and could not catch a flight back to New York for days afterward. My aunt’s previous fiancé, the man she was with before marrying my uncle and whom had met my family numerous times, was killed in the events. Although I am too young to remember the actual events, I feel that it definitely has had an impact on both myself and my family in a way that it made us feel extremely lucky to be alive and together when so many tragic losses had occurred that day.

9/11 led to an increase in Islamophobia in the U.S. and in the number of Islamophobic hate crimes reported to the police; have you or your family experienced Islamophobic hate, either growing up or at UCSB, post-9/11? 

As my family is not Muslim, we have not.

9/11 fundamentally changed the way the United States approached national security in several ways, including the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and a number of added security practices at airports. Has anyone around you (e.g. your parents) spoken about what life was like before 9/11? What was different, to your knowledge? 

My mother mentions that she was definitely less afraid to get on a plane before 9/11. She was terrified when she had to get on a plane to come back to New York just days after 9/11. My parents mention that security was a lot less strict, but they do not say that nostalgically because they are definitely grateful for the added security measures.

Tyler Ferguson ’22, political science major:

How old were you when 9/11 happened? When do you first remember hearing about it? 

I was one. I remember hearing about it for the first time when I was seven.

What have you learned in school about 9/11? Do you believe you were adequately educated about 9/11?

I learned that al-Qaeda flew an airplane into the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001. I learned that they also hijacked other planes across the U.S. I learned that over 3,000 people died that day, and many more firefighters since then have died from cancers and other diseases they have contracted from that horrible day.

How has 9/11 affected your life? Have you or your family been directly impacted by it? 

My family was not directly impacted, nor was I, but 9/11 has affected all of us indirectly. Society lives by different standards now, post-9/11. We have stricter security guidelines. We all have smartphones to guarantee we can call loved ones quickly in the event of an emergency. We all live in fear realizing that terror attacks and threats are a real danger facing the U.S. and the world today.

9/11 led to an increase in Islamophobia in the U.S. and in the number of Islamophobic hate crimes reported to the police; have you or your family experienced Islamophobic hate, either growing up or at UCSB, post-9/11? 

No. Neither I nor anyone in my family is a practicing Muslim. However, having close friends who are Muslim, I have personally witnessed them experiencing Islamophobic hate or racial profiling. A recent example I can think of of racial profiling for two of my friends was when I went to Israel this summer. Everyone in our group who was white got through the Israeli security with no problems, but two of my friends who went on that trip, who are both young Muslim women, were stopped and subject to extra screenings and lengthy interrogations. The Islamophobia and racial profiling in this world is toxic and morally corrupt, and since 9/11 Islamophobia is becoming increasingly more and more common. Since Trump has taken office, especially, I see Muslim people in society being shunned, turned away, and hated. It is heartbreaking. We as Americans need to unite and love one another. We have so much more that unites us than divides us. We are all human beings. We need to unite and fight to end Islamophobia, racism, homophobia, ageism, transphobia and all other forms of bigotry.

9/11 fundamentally changed the way the United States approached national security in several ways, including the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and a number of added security practices at airports. Has anyone around you (e.g. your parents) spoken about what life was like before 9/11? What was different, to your knowledge? 

My parents said it was so much quicker and easier to get on an airplane. You could show up to the airport 10 minutes before the flight and get on no problem. Now we are expected to arrive over two hours early. I understand that it is for security, but it’s shocking to hear the societal differences of pre-9/11 and post-9/11.

Christine Choi ’20, Asian American studies major:

How old were you when 9/11 happened? When do you first remember hearing about it? 

I was almost three years old when 9/11 happened. I first remember hearing about it when I was in elementary school at age five when we recognized what happened that day with a moment of silence on the PA system.

What have you learned in school about 9/11? Do you believe you were adequately educated about 9/11?

I’ve learned that 9/11 was America’s greatest tragedy. I don’t believe that I was adequately educated about 9/11 because I feel like we were just taught that it was a sad event, give our moment of silence and to stay quiet about it. We were never taught any kinds of details or even the true aftermath of how it affected us as a society.

How has 9/11 affected your life? Have you or your family been directly impacted by it? 

My family and I were not directly impacted by this event, but the effects of 9/11 can be seen everywhere. We’ve grown up with these strict TSA rules our entire lives, but we don’t really fully recognize why we have them since we aren’t properly educated about 9/11.

Jordan Curiel ’20, dance major:

How old were you when 9/11 happened? When do you first remember hearing about it? 

I was about to turn three years old on 9/11. I don’t remember the first time I heard about what had happened because I can’t remember a time when I didn’t know about it. 

What have you learned in school about 9/11? Do you believe you were adequately educated about 9/11?

My memories of learning about it in school are only of the straight facts because every time one of my teachers tried to talk about it, they would get emotional. Some of them became angry and some still had a kind of indignant disbelief, but mostly they would just turn very, very sad. And so we would get the facts, have a moment of silence and continue with our other lessons.

How has 9/11 affected your life? Have you or your family been directly impacted by it? 

My family is fortunate enough to have been far away from the attacks, so we haven’t been touched directly by 9/11. But there’s an ever-present feeling of danger since 9/11, and the knowledge that we will always have enemies out there seems much more real now. Many of the men in my family served in the armed forces in one way or another, and the effects of the 9/11 attacks have really instilled in us that those veterans are heroes for defending this country because we need it.

9/11 led to an increase in Islamophobia in the U.S. and in the number of Islamophobic hate crimes reported to the police; have you or your family experienced Islamophobic hate, either growing up or at UCSB, post-9/11? 

Fortunately, I haven’t encountered any Islamophobia in my life or at UCSB.

9/11 fundamentally changed the way the United States approached national security in several ways, including the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and a number of added security practices at airports. Has anyone around you (e.g. your parents) spoken about what life was like before 9/11? What was different, to your knowledge? 

The difference I hear about most often is in the form of complaints about strict airport security. I’ve only ever been on a plane once when I was five, so I thought nothing of it — TSA was just keeping us safe, doing its job. Then my cousin got stopped at the airport on his way home to see us (he’s pale as a ghost with freckles and bleach-blond hair), and I started thinking that maybe it’s not a routine safety thing. Maybe the fear of attack that began with 9/11 has never gone away because 20 years ago that would have been unacceptable.

Is there anything else you would like to add? 

Events like September 11, Peal Harbor, the Kennedy Assassination, etc., are things that everyone remembers in perfect detail. Hardly anyone alive at those times doesn’t remember exactly where they were, what they were doing and who they were with when they heard. Our generation felt that in 2016 when we realized who we had elected president. If the biggest shock we’ve had to endure is seeing a moronic millionaire take the government for a joyride, we might just survive this. But I really think everyone needs to remember those who didn’t survive the moments that defined generations past.

Nina Nazario, political science major: 

How old were you when 9/11 happened? When do you first remember hearing about it? 

Seven years old. I went to preschool in New York City, and my mom worked in the Financial District.

What have you learned in school about 9/11? Do you believe you were adequately educated about 9/11?

Yes because I grew up in the area, so it was a day of serious respect for the children in our school who lost their parent(s) in 9/11.

How has 9/11 affected your life? Have you or your family been directly impacted by it? 

After it happened, my mom experienced a little PTSD while commuting to work. But I remember watching the buildings fall from across the Hudson at the Hoboken Train station, so I had a clear view of the whole thing: the body of smoke in the air, the fire at the top of the buildings, then one building being there and suddenly disappearing into a black smoke. That imagery that has stayed present in my mind throughout my life. When I’m in a panic situation, that memory is the first thing to pop into my mind. For our family, it’s given us great sympathy for the people we know who were affected by the attack and lost their loved ones.

9/11 led to an increase in Islamophobia in the U.S. and in the number of Islamophobic hate crimes reported to the police; have you or your family experienced Islamophobic hate, either growing up or at UCSB, post-9/11? 

No.

9/11 fundamentally changed the way the United States approached national security in several ways, including the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and a number of added security practices at airports. Has anyone around you (e.g. your parents) spoken about what life was like before 9/11? What was different, to your knowledge? 

I don’t think life was completely different; maybe air travel, but I think everyone experienced that. I was definitely more aware of a certain patriotic environment, in my classrooms and especially from our teachers and local police officers who would come to visit our preschool. I remember we had to do a lot of random stuff with police after 9/11, like getting fingerprinted in 2nd grade during class, listening to cops talk about safety protocols and talk about what to do if you lost one or both of your parents or if you had friends that did. The idea of “America” did not feel like the white picket fence dream. Really, the word “America” felt like there was an unsaid afterthought “America … Don’t fuck with us.” Since we had already seen the worst-case scenario of a terrorist attack and grew up with kids who had no parents because of it and saw in person their despair, patriotism felt more aggressive in a self-defensive way.

Is there anything else you would like to add? 

Any time 9/11 comes up, my mother talks about a security guard she knew who waited by the street-level elevator at the World Trade Center Station, she took this elevator everyday. A few days before 9/11, he started giving out tips for what to do in an emergency (no one knew why) then 9/11 happened. So my mom and my whole family strongly agree with the conspiracy that the U.S. government was wholly aware of what was coming. Its really hard to accept that and also accept how many people were victims because of a tragic event that may have been better addressed/prevented.