Mexico Also Remembers September 11 Attacks

Eleven years have passed since the attacks on the World Trade Center in the city of New York and on the Pentagon in Washington D.C. in the United States of America. On September 11, 2012, President Barack Obama began the commemoration of this date early in the morning in the South Lawn of the White House.

Many opinions on this subject have been expressed around the globe; in commemoration of an event which had global repercussions, the whole world has spoken out in cyberspace to remember the attacks. Mexico has been no exception.

Early on in the day, the President-elect Enrique Peña Nieto (@EPN) [es] expressed his solidarity with the neighbouring country using his Twitter account:

@EPN: Mi solidaridad con el pueblo estadounidense a 11 años de los trágicos eventos del 11 de septiembre.

@EPN: My solidarity with the American people on the 11th anniversary of the tragic events of September 11.

Another important figure on the political scene, the senator Javier Lozano (@JLozanoA) [es], recalled the attacks:

Monument commemorating the victims of September 11, 2001. Image from Flickr user happyskrappy, under Creative Commons licence (CC BY 2.0)

Monument commemorating the victims of September 11, 2001. Image from Flickr user happyskrappy, under Creative Commons licence (CC BY 2.0)

@JLozanoA: Un día como hoy pero de hace 11 años, más o menos a esta hora, se perpetraron los ataques terroristas sobre las torres gemelas del WTC en NY

@JLozanoA: On a day like today but 11 years ago, more or less at this time, the terrorist attacks against the WTC twin towers in NY were carried out

The journalist León Krauze (@Leon_Krauze) [es] shared this memory of that September 11, 2001 with his followers:

@Leon_Krauze: Hace once años, terminaba de dar clase de 7 en el Tec. Mi amigo Eduardo Higuera fue quien me dijo lo que había ocurrido en Nueva York.

@Leon_Krauze: Eleven years ago, I had just finished a 7 class in the Tec. My friend Eduardo Higuera was the one who told me what had happened in New York.

Besides the many remembrances and displays of support for the victims, some users including Christopher Bello (@SoloQuotes) [es] took advantage of the occasion to look for a more critical angle on the subject:

@SoloQuotes: 11 de Septiembre… La fecha que dio paso a la manipulación del miedo como el arma mas poderosa [sic]

@SoloQuotes: September 11… The day which made way for the manipulation of fear as the most powerful weapon

Along the same lines, the blogger Sopitas [es] pointed out:

Hoy, a once años del incidente, ¿qué ocurre cuando llegamos al país de nuestros vecinos del norte, con nuestros compatriotas que cruzan la frontera para buscar una oportunidad, las aerolíneas, qué está sucediendo en el Medio Oriente?

Esta situación derivó en una reacción que llevó a los estadounidenses a sacrificar sus libertades y comenzar las guerras que hoy han generado un importante impacto en su economía. Hoy, once años después del atentado en Manhattan, los estadounidenses han permitido una invasión en su privacidad y en el mundo, todo bajo la consigna “es por tu seguridad” o “para garantizar tu libertad”. La lista es larga y corre desde trato que uno recibe en los aeropuertos, donde uno no puede entrar a un avión con la leche de su bebé o ir al baño los últimos veinte minutos de un vuelo. Viajar se ha convertido en un largo y molesto proceso que se ha convertido en triste espacio de sospechas, hostilidades y abusos… Todo en nombre de la seguridad.

Today, eleven years after the event, what happens when we arrive in the country of our northern neighbours, with our compatriots who cross the border in search of an opportunity, the airlines, what is happening in the Middle East?

This situation has led to a reaction which provokes the Americans to sacrifice their liberties and to begin the wars which today have had a significant impact on their economy. Today, eleven years after the attack in Manhattan, the Americans have allowed an invasion of their privacy and of the world, all under the slogan “it's for your security” or “to guarantee your freedom”. The list is long and runs from the treatment that one receives in the airports, where one cannot board the plane with baby milk or go to the toilet during the last twenty minutes of a flight. Travelling has become a long and unpleasant process which has become a sad space of suspicions, hostilities and abuses… All in the name of security.

The user Francisco MFernandez (@pacomariano) [es] described the American reaction following the attacks in these terms:

@pacomariano: Hace 11 años, EUA fue atacado por cero Irakis y cero Afganos. En respuesta, invadió ambos paises días despues. [sic]

@pacomariano: Eleven years ago, the USA was attacked by zero Iraqis and zero Afghans. In response, it invaded both countries a few days later.

Without a doubt, the loss of human lives in catastrophic events is deeply saddening and the events which occurred in the United States of America exactly 4,018 days ago are no exception. It was a Tuesday which will remain written in history as a day of mourning for a nation, but with subsequent repercussions for the majority of the inhabitants of this planet.

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