The Day the World Stopped: 9/11
By Dr. Elizabeth-Anne Stewart
C. 2001, Elizabeth-Anne Stewart
Poem from DePaul University's Interfaith Memorial Service, 9/14/2001
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Unfortunately, the poem I wrote for DePaul's Interfaith Memorial Service in 2001, just three days after the horrific events of 9/11, is far too long to reproduce here; however, revisiting it 25 years later, I see that my fears for the world were not unfounded.
As a University Minister/Faculty member at DePaul, I could tap into the microcosm of university life, a reality that helped me compose the poem. The images, vocabulary, and mood reflect what surfaced in countless conversations with the wider academic community. On the one hand, students attended classes as usual, but some found, to their surprise, that their instructors made no reference to the events of three days before. Instead, the syllabus was the focus, along with keeping up with assigned readings and research. In a time of shock and terror, what they needed was an opportunity to process their thoughts, feelings, and fears — in other words, to talk to their peers and instructors about what had so vividly flashed across their screens.
As for Muslim students or anyone who might be mistaken for Muslim, there was now a sense of being scapegoated off campus for atrocities that actually violated the tenets of Islam. Women wearing hijab felt particularly at risk, as did men wearing the taqiyah or traditional brimless cap. Ironically, Hindus and Sikhs were targeted as well and were therefore afraid to leave campus. There were countless stories of vandalism, arson, and physical assault levied against mosques and Muslim business owners or those perceived to be Middle Eastern or South Asian.
All this made me fear for what the future had to bring. Even if you don't read the whole poem, here are some lines that may help you remember those terrible days of 25 years ago and their outcome:
The day the world stopped,
Peace warbled faintly from the rubble,
Whispering forgiveness and mercy,
Pleading for prudence and restraint
In a voice cracked by grief.
Keep the hounds at bay
Lest they tear her wing from wing.
Quickly, scoop her up
That she – and we – may live!
Let the world turn once more
On the axis of Love…
— Dr. Elizabeth-Anne Stewart