Editorial: As Sept. 11 approaches, we pause to reflect

Nine years ago, the greatest civilian tragedy in the history of the United States took place. Our economic symbol destroyed, our military might punctured, and our sense of security as Americans evaporated.

Our great and powerful country came to a screeching halt as panic spread and our hearts bled for our fellow Americans.

It was Sept. 11, 2001 when hijackers took control of four airplanes. Two were crashed into the World Trade Center towers, a third into the Pentagon and a fourth in rural Pennsylvania – the plane that was reportedly headed toward the Capitol.

In all, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists killed 2,977 people. The Afghan and Iraq Wars eventually stemmed from the events that day. And just last week, the war in Iraq was officially declared over by President Barack Obama, though 50,000 soldiers remain in the country.

Yet all we have to show for, nine years after the fact, are thousands of dead soldiers and civilians, growing hatred between cultures and a controversy surrounding an Islamic community center being built near ground zero.

We need to recognize all the people who have died either directly resulting from the events of Sept. 11 or the conflicts that have since ensued.

We must honor those who serve. For innumerable death, loss and sacrifice plague every community across this great nation, including Morgantown and our own at West Virginia University.

Unfortunately, tragedies – even one of this magnitude –often fall to the wayside in favor of more recent events. Today, our country struggles with widespread and adverse sentiment toward Muslim people. As a land of diversity and religious freedom, we cannot let this persist.

Though we are trying to move forward, we can't forget our past. We can't forget what has happened, what it meant, and what we as a nation should stand for today.

With must realize who was at fault Sept. 11. Extremists. Al-Qaeda. Osama bin Laden.

The Muslim people are not to blame for the horrors of Sept. 11. Instead, we must join together to remember the fallen heroes and stand by fellow Americans.