September 11: UMass Boston Reacts to National Tragedy
UMass
Boston’s “New Chapter” Opens with Convocation
September
11: UMass Boston Reacts to National Tragedy
Students
Organize Donation Drive
College
of Management Convocation Features Jack Beatty
McCormack
Institute Senegal Partnership Receives New Support
Gerontology
Institute Studies Elders in Housing
A
New Leader for the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy
A
Best Practice: Biology Advising
University
Welcomes Back Students
Two
Days of Fun at the Boston Folk Festival
New
Life-Long E-Mail Accounts for Students
Arts
on the Point Brings Columbia Point History to Campus
Campus
Center Changing UMass Boston Landscape
By Leigh DuPuy
It
had started as a routine morning with students, faculty, and staff arriving
on campus Tuesday, September 11, to start the workday or attend an early
class. Within seconds of a network broadcast announcing two planes had
crashed into New York’s World Trade Center, the day’s tenor
changed drastically and members of the university community gathered
around the bookstore television, turned on office radios, and tried
to access the Internet to monitor the news as tragedy unfolded.
Disbelief mounted as news spread of other hijacked planes and crashes in Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania, and a series of evacuations in businesses, government offices, and schools throughout the country. Following the announcement by Massachusetts Governor Jane Swift that all nonessential state employees should return home, UMass Boston administrators cancelled all classes and university activities after 11:15 a.m. Cars crowded the university drive, local roads, and highways as people left school or work to go home. By the end of a day marked by a blitz of news bulletins and graphic footage, the world had witnessed what is now being called the worst act of terrorism on American soil.
The university community retuned to classes and work on Wednesday, passing American and international flags at half-mast along university drive. Many events were postponed in response to the shock, grief, and loss felt by all, including UMass Boston’s convocation, which was rescheduled for September 24, and a business club forum with Mayor Thomas Menino. Instead, the Offices of the Chancellor, Academic Affairs, and Student Affairs created campus activities to offer support and forums to express reactions.
On
Wednesday, September 12 an interfaith memorial service was held at the
Ryan Lounge in McCormack Hall. To a group of students, faculty, and
staff, Chancellor Jo Ann Gora voiced a common sentiment, “This
is not only a national tragedy, but a UMass Boston tragedy. This is
a terrible time our nation is facing. September 11 has changed us all.”
Reverend Adrienne Berry-Burton invited memorial participants to stand and offer their prayers and thoughts. Many addressed the group to discuss their fear, confusion, anger, and sorrow during the service. The program also included readings from selected psalms as given by Joel Grossman of the Health Services Department and a moment of silence and prayer.
On Thursday afternoon, more than 250 people returned to the Ryan Lounge to discuss reactions, historical perspectives, and future consequences of terrorist activities. At a teach-in entitled “The Terrorist Attack: A Forum and Dialog for the UMass Boston Community” a group of faculty and students addressed the crowd, examining the histories of terrorism, how people handle trauma and grief, and the rise of anti-Islamic sentiment toward Arab American citizens.
Kevin Bowen, director of the Joiner Center for the Study of War and Social Consequences, led the panel. Participants included Paul Bookbinder, a history professor who spoke on the history of political violence and terrorism; Ester Shapiro, psychologist and specialist in grieving and depression; and Paul Atwood, a Joiner Center fellow with expertise in the Middle East. Particularly poignant was the testimony of UMass Boston student Mohammed El-Khatib. He spoke of the already fervent prejudice against Arab American and his own fear of retaliation against American citizens of Middle Eastern descent.
The university offered other opportunities for people to share their thoughts in the “National Disaster Loss Grief Session” held on September 25 at the Health Promotion Center. University Health Services and Campus Ministry also invited people to register for a bereavement group, which will meet in eight sessions. People are encouraged to visit the counseling center or participate in university health and campus ministry programs as needed in the aftermath of September 11.
Faculty
and students discuss terrorism and university reactions to the events
of September 11 during the teach-in panel at the Ryan Lounge.