I was shocked when I picked up a copy of The Hoya on Friday and discovered that there was no mention of the eighth anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. While time has passed, the tragic events of that day are not ones which quickly fade from our memories – or at least I thought so until last Friday.

The Hoya’s decision not to include a mention of the anniversary, whether intentional or not, disappointed me greatly. As someone whose uncle worked at the Pentagon that day and who subsequently saw his aunt deployed to Iraq as part of a misguided president’s “war on terror,” I cannot believe or accept the fact that the events of 9/11 won’t be remembered and those who tragically lost their lives mourned.

What happened from that point forward can rightly be debated and the lessons that need to be learned discussed, but we must remember that day eight years ago when all Americans stood together with a unity of purpose: to care for those who were injured, to remember those who died and to find those responsible and hold them accountable for their actions. It disturbs me to think that eight years later that attitude of respect may have been lost and that the memory of that day is going with it.

I think there may be a silver lining here, however. Perhaps we can recognize that now is the time to take action – a moment close enough to the events of that day eight years ago to recall the lessons learned and the attitude of unity adopted (if only briefly), yet far enough away to look at the date with a greater sense of perspective than in past years. Maybe this is a unique time in that we can still shape the legacy of Sept. 11. If we could work in any way, great or small, to evoke the feeling of oneness as a nation we experienced on that dark day, then that could be our success.

President Obama and Congress seemed to think so this April, when the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act was passed and signed into law. This bill recognizes Sept. 11 each year as a national day of service with the hopes that it will, in part, “recapture the spirit of unity and compassion that inspired our nation following the attacks.” This federally recognized day of service is not itself enough to truly honor those lost in the terrorist attacks eight years ago. But it is but one example of how, by remembering those who died, a greater good can result. Maybe that is the legacy we, at this moment, can work toward building.

Regardless of what action we can take from here forward, we must remember 9/11. The Hoya, as Georgetown’s newspaper of record for the past 90 years, should be held to a high standard. Its failure to mention last week’s anniversary lived up to neither its name nor its standard. Here is the essence of what should have been published in last Friday’s issue:

“Eight years ago today, nearly 3,000 Americans tragically lost their lives in acts of suicide terrorism in New York City, Washington, D.C. and western Pennsylvania. While for the rest of us life has gone on, no one should ever forget those who died at the hands of a group of religious radicals intent on harming American civilians. We remember the mothers and the fathers, the wives and the husbands, the sisters and the brothers, the daughters and the sons, who left to travel or to go to work that day and never returned home. We recall the bravery of the passengers on United Airlines Flight 93 and the first responders in New York City and Washington, D.C. who helped to save countless innocent lives. We will never forget the memories of those who lost their lives, and hope remains that those who planned these attacks are brought to justice.”

Brian Shaud is a sophomore in the College.

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