How Can the World "Never Forget?"
Properly and wholeheartedly paying tribute to a tragedy — the hurt, the abuse, the loss — each year can grow exhausting.
With much discomfort, September 11, 2023, passed by as any given day does. You’d think spending it in New York would provide a particular eeriness — perhaps one would expect a workplace acknowledgment or 6th Avenue tribute to those lost.
The shared recognition of 9/11 seems to have waned among my circles and on the platforms I frequent. Sure, uttering “nine-eleven” brings with it a particular melancholic connotation. Google might change its home screen logo for 24 hours. The New York Times and Washington Post will surely publish a few related articles.
But do US elementary schools still observe a moment of silence as mine did throughout my early childhood? Will New Yorkers solemnly walk the busy streets, awaiting the Financial District's two building-size beams to light up the sky? Or will most Americans, young and old, east coasters and west coasters, go about their September 11th as any other day?
Two Years Since the US Withdrew From Afghanistan
August marked two years since the US pulled its forces and resources out of Afghanistan. The sudden withdrawal brought nationwide chaos, insecurity, and economic collapse. The looming threat of the Taliban prompted Afghans and non-Afghans to flee the country, taking any form of transportation, any means at all, to get beyond the border. And women and girls braced themselves for an antiquated, patriarchal society, soon realized after the Taliban took control.
For months, Afghanistan controlled the news cycle, and one year out, the world’s interest hadn’t dwindled. Government rescue efforts were still in place, human rights groups continued to call attention to the Taliban’s growing list of abuses, and top media outlets shed light on the moving stories of the brave and the unlucky Afghans.
The situation in the country — particularly that of women and girls — has only gotten worse, but attention has undoubtedly waned. Governments no longer feel diplomatic and public pressure to invest in the tragedy, and I can guarantee that social media algorithms brought far less related content to the eyes of the everyday information consumer. The two year anniversary, just as 9/11/23 did, came and went.
One Year Since the Murder of Mahsa Amini
The same thoughts arose as we reached the first anniversary of 22-year-old Iranian Mahsa Amini’s death on September 16. The Iranian regime has no commendable track record in its treatment of women, but Amini’s particularly brutal murder — prompted by a few strands of hair falling out from under her hijab — lit a fire under the flames of thousands of fed-up Iranian women.
September 16, 2022, sparked nationwide protests demanding an end to the mandatory hijab law. Iran’s streets have since seen incredible acts of bravery, police and state brutality, bloodshed, and death. The news cycle has not yet cycled elsewhere, so the Iranian regime continues to feel the weight of Mahsa Amini within the country and among Western democracies.
I’m curious what this movement will look like in a year, in 22 years. Should the news cycle move on and attention shift elsewhere, what will Iranian activists desperate for respect and basic freedoms do? Will Mahsa Amini be forgotten?
How Do We “Never Forget?”
Activists, survivors, widows — even those who felt a particular heaviness on their chest while watching the nightly news — try their best to keep the memory of a tragedy or event alive. But, to properly and wholeheartedly pay tribute each year (and year-round) can grow exhausting.
Perhaps that’s the nature of time: As generations grow old, memories fade with them. And as new generations change the stream of popular discussions and relevant news, old discussions and old news won’t be given a place.
But the hurt, the abuse, the loss — from 22 years, two years, or one year ago — is still there for some. How do we not leave them behind?