Commemorating September 11th in Detroit

By Jumana Abusalah

As we all know, September 11, 2011 was the anniversary of the tragic attacks that occurred in New York City ten years ago.  People all around the world were devastated that innocent lives were lost; they were shocked that anyone could do such a horrible thing! Many communities held events and ceremonies that commemorated the anniversary of 9/11, including Wayne State University (WSU), in downtown Detroit.  The WSU event was an interfaith Remembrance Ceremony that took place on Thursday September 8, 2011.

Students, staff, and faculty of all different religions and cultures gathered around in Wayne State’s Undergraduate Library. The ceremony was held on a weekday instead of the weekend, in order to allow more staff and students to attend. It was only a twenty minute event, but it held great meaning.  One of the ceremony speakers was WSU Dean of Students, David Strauss. He remarked that it is a great thing to be able to have such an event on campus and to be able to have people of different faiths and backgrounds attend. “We want to respect and honor those that we lost, but the message that we want to get out there is that we want to promote civility and understanding and coming together.” It did not matter what religion you were, it just mattered that you were there for a reason, and that this reason has brought everyone together. 

The event also included a poetry reading, a flag ceremony, and a moment of silence. WSU is a very diverse university, and was therefore the perfect place to hold such an event. It showed the coming together of people in remembrance of the sad day that took place ten years ago. This date in history brought people from different backgrounds and states together at Wayne State for the Remembrance Ceremony.  

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