21 Years After — A 9/11 Photo Story

Flowers at the 9/11 Memorial, 21 years after the initial tragedy I Photo by Avian Hall

It was September 11, 2022 — 21 years after the initial attack. The sky was gray at the 9/11 Memorial. The culturally diverse nature of the place reflected the far-reaching quality of the tragedy’s influence. Thousands of different people with thousands of different stories unite every year to face a reality of brokenness.

Jacob Elbaz | Photo by Avian Hall

The Photographer

Jacob Elbaz’s bright red hat was arranged on his head as if he never checked the mirror to see the way it was askew atop his messy, silver hair. He carried a camera with a foot-long lens and was taking pictures of the memorial.

“Let me show you something very interesting.”

He pulled a large paper out of his backpack and pointed proudly to a photo of the Twin Towers spewing smoke. He explained that he took the photo. He was living in Manhattan and was sleeping in a car in SoHo when he heard an explosion. He jumped out of the car, grabbed his camera and snapped the photo. 

Elbaz was born in Morocco and grew up in Israel. He moved to New York in the 80s after an already-successful career as a photojournalist. He photographed tragedies in the Middle East and New York, including the flooding of the Jordan River in 1963 and the Yom Kippur War. In spite of such exposure to horror, Elbaz was full of laughter. He was delighted to be interviewed and when asked if his photo could be taken he requested that he wanted to look “serious but a little bit stupid” in it.

Ann and Grace | Photo by Avian Hall

The Mother

Ann was sitting resolutely on one of the stones surrounding the memorial. Her sister Grace stood tall beside her. Ann told her story like a movie with her son Gary as the protagonist. He was working for Fidelity in Tower Seven when the plane hit. Ann, who was working as a nurse, didn’t know whether or not he made it out. She said the city was silent — every telephone was dead. But in true cinematic fashion, she recounted how Gary crossed over the Brooklyn Bridge in his torn shirt, covered in mud and dust. Now she and Grace watch the memorial’s visitors and constantly remind everyone that Gary only made it out by the grace of God.

Bridget | Photo by Avian Hall

The Student

Bridget was standing alone looking around Ground Zero. Originally from New Jersey, Bridget studies dance at Pace University. She walks through the memorial almost every day on her way to work but makes a special point of coming to the memorial on 9/11 to leave a flower and take a photo for her mom. The flower and the photo are a tribute to her mother’s good friend William Kelly, a man working in the building on that day. Like many others, he did not make it out. Bridget said that normally, “it is a place of peace,” but this day is always different. 

“I think it’s hard to mourn when there’s just a lot of people doing the same.” 

Bridget was only one year old when the Twin Towers were attacked. The event has still proved to be consistently relevant in her life — even down to her daily commute.

Fernando and Daniella | Photo by Avian Hall

The Father and His Daughter

Fernando and Daniella looked over the edge of the fountain carefully and reverently. A resident of Jalisco, Mexico, Fernando said that when he brought his daughter to the United States for the U.S. Open, he felt that it was very important that Daniella also saw this. 

With his daughter patiently watching him he said, “We should never forget what human beings are capable of doing so that their generation can do something different.” 

He spoke of how important it is that his daughter’s generation is made up of good leaders. Daniella proved that his words weren’t empty by sharing her aspirations of being an architect or professional tennis player and speaking of the way she looks up to her dad as a leader. She seemed reflective at the memorial, explaining that she felt both “sadness and peace.” 

Fernando proudly took photos whenever the microphone was pointed at Daniella. He emphasized that “we have to keep giving them values so we can make a better world for them and they can make a better world for themselves.”

Leaving the memorial, a man shouted Bible verses from a megaphone, a group sang praise songs and a woman blew loudly on some kind of animal horn that resembled the traditionally Jewish Shofar. Through the collage of accents and ages, it is clear that everyone from everywhere has come here to share in the memory of the tragedy that changed America forever. However, the atmosphere felt anything but defeated. Through every conversation, the theme was not sorrow but hope.

Avian Hall is a photographer for the Empire State Tribune. He is a freshman at The King’s College majoring in Business Management.

Matthew Peterson is a reporter for the Empire State Tribune. He is a freshman at The King's College studying Journalism, Culture and Society.