Live Life Your Way!
[EPISODE] What Has Changed Since 9/11
September 11, 2001. It seems like a million years since the planes crashed into the World Trade Center, now the Freedom Tower.
Where were you? What was your experience? Did you walk across the bridge? And what is your wish for NYC? What has changed in our city since then?
Join Noreen as she remembers the day planes hit NYC.
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Segment 1
Noreen is joined by Paul Blanchard to discuss memories and experiences of 9/11 on the 17th anniversary. Our listeners share where they were and how they remember 9/11. Adam shares how he worked in the WTC and how leaving his company two years before 9/11 ended up saving his life. We hear the tale of a caller who deals with emotional trauma of witnessing the tragedy firsthand. Paul remembers being on a vacation and off the grid in Greece, but still saw how news of the tragedy rapidly spread worldwide.
Segment 2
Noreen explores the atmosphere in NY in the aftermath of 9/11. She discusses how there were concerns that race relations would worsen in the aftermath. We hear from a young woman who was a high school student at the time in small town America. Our caller remembers worrying about intolerance spreading in the aftermath. Noreen shares how she listened and offered her compassion to a neighbor struggling to cope with her memories of tragedy.
Noreen and Paul comment on their experiences of terrorism in the U.K. to demonstrate how 9/11 changed life in America. Paul stresses the importance of resisting terrorism and standing up to the threats. Paul points out that the attacks established solidarity and brought people together in the U.S.
Segment 3
Noreen and Paul explore the international reactions to the 9/11 tragedy. Noreen shares the story of her mother praying for the victims in Jamaica after the attacks. Paul discusses the atmosphere in Britain during the attacks and how Britain experienced a sense of fear that they too would be attacked. Our hosts are joined by Tonya, a mother from the Bronx, who shares her fear while picking up her son from school in Manhattan on 9/11.
Noreen expresses her fear of potential attacks in the subway. She shares the story of mysterious bags left unattended in her car on the NYC subway. Noreen discusses the See Something Say Something campaign. Paul compares it to the U.K’s See It, Say It, Sorted campaign.
Segment 4
Noreen and Paul take a call from Ruth, who worked to supply surplus boots from the Korean War to volunteers helping in the cleanup and rescue efforts at Ground Zero. Despite losing a friend, Ruth shares how she contributed to the recovery efforts in her own way. Paul and Noreen honor the victims, the firefighters, the first responders, and all the New Yorkers who came together after 9/11. Noreen concludes by extoling the virtues of New York as a city. She expresses her love for New York. Noreen concludes with a message to love yourself and your loved ones.
