As the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks draws near—and as the anniversary passes annually—we all recall where we were that day (as I did in this essay last year). It was a traumatic experience, not just for New Yorkers or Americans (or those in the Washington, D.C. area) but for almost everyone in the world. Shock, revulsion, fear, empathy, anger. These were just some of the emotions that most people felt as they watched the fires burn at the Pentagon and the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center collapse in New York City.
Recently, we at Britannica published a brand-new treatment of the attacks, written by CNN national security analyst and director of the national security studies program at the New America Foundation Peter L. Bergen, whose best-selling The Longest War: The Enduring Conflict Between America and Al-Qaeda is a must-read for anyone attempting to make sense not only of the attacks of 9/11 but also to understand the aftermath—the war in Afghanistan and the march to war in Iraq, the troubled relationship of the U.S. and Pakistan, the perspective of both Western and Arab/Muslims, the torture and extraordinary rendition programs, the hunting and killing of bin Laden, etc. (We’ve also published a special feature on the attacks and their aftermath in pictures.)
This week, we are honored that several of Britannica’s contributors have agreed to share their reflections on the Britannica Blog, and we will publish them throughout this week. We invite our readers to share your memories about that day and about the legacy of the attacks.
September 6
* Sir Lawrence Freedman, professor of War Studies and Vice-Principal, King’s College, University of London, author of A Choice of Enemies: America Confronts the Middle East and The Transformation of Strategic Affairs (among others), and contributor to Britannica on the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, nuclear strategy, the Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks, and the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
* Deborah Denno, professor of Law at Fordham University in New York, author of Biology and Violence: From Birth to Adulthood and Changing Law’s Mind: How Neuroscience Can Help Us Punish Criminals More Fairly and Effectively (forthcoming from Oxford University Press), and a contributor to Britannica on lethal injection, the gas chamber, and electrocution
September 7
* Geoffrey Abbott, former Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London, author of Rack, Rope, and Red-Hot Pincers: A History of Torture and Its Instruments and author of several entries in Britannica on torture techniques
* Allan R. Millett, University Research Professor and Director, Eisenhower Center at the University of New Orleans, author of The War for Korea, 1945-1950: A House Burning and The War for Korea, 1950-51: They Came from the North (among others), and contributor to Britannica of articles on the Korean War and the Battle of Chosin Reservoir
September 8
* Malcolm N. Shaw QC, Senior Fellow, Lauterpacht Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge and Research Professor in International Law, University of Leicester, a practicing barrister at Essex Court Chambers, London, author of International Law (6th edition, 2008), and author of Britannica’s entry on international law
* Bernard A. Weisberger, author of America Afire: Jefferson, Adams, and the Revolutionary Election of 1800, who contributed the early history of the United States (through 1850) for Britannica
September 9
* William Schabas, professor of international law at Middlesex University in London and author of Britannica’s entry on international criminal law
* George J. Andreopoulos, professor of government, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York, editor of Genocide: Conceptual and Historical Dimensions, and a contributor to Britannica on asylum, ethnic cleansing, extradition, genocide, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Source: Britannica Blog
