NAI Region 9 - Director's Note

Director's Note

As I sit down and write this, we are fast approaching the ten-year anniversary of a day that many of us will never forget. Growing up, I can remember people talking about the days that everyone remembers where they were: my parents will never forget where they were when they learned that President Kennedy was shot; my grandparents, when Pearl Harbor was bombed; me, when the World Trade Center was hit. (I was walking through the Student Union on the University of Maine campus just after the first plane hit, for the record.)

A shared experience like this is a very powerful universal concept, but one that is also very challenging to utilize. Experiences like this impact people differently and we have to be aware of unintended connections that people may make. For example, in addition to the feelings of loss, tragedy, anger and the like, September 11, 2001, also instills in me a sense of pride-and even relief. Pride because of how the people of New York and this nation pulled together in this tragedy's aftermath, and relief for a much more personal reason.

Some of you know that I am not originally a West Coaster; I grew up on the East Coast just outside of Boston. At the time of the attacks on September 11th, I was in school at the aforementioned University of Maine. My father is a structural firefighter, specializing in fire prevention and inspection; in 2001, he was also a member of Massachusetts' emergency response teams dealing with hazardous material cleanup and high-angle/rope rescues. My emotional response of relief comes from the fact that his emergency response teams were the only ones from our area of Massachusetts that were not sent to help with the cleanup. I have a strong feeling of pride to all the people, in jobs identical to my father's, for all the work and sacrifices they made; and also an immense sense of relief that he did not have to take part in it. These disparate emotions create conflicting thoughts about 9/11.

Similarly, I have heard others refer to the sadness, despair and frustration that they feel over the reactions that some people have had towards Muslims in the aftermath of the attack. For some, the thoughts and emotions of the attack on 9/11 have become inextricably linked to the ideas of prejudice and bigotry.

Could the strong emotions felt by many people on that day, coupled with the many ways that people chose to channeled these emotions, create an interpretive mine field? In my opinion, yes-strong universals with strong emotional connections can quickly create a quagmire that can pose serious interpretive challenges. On a smaller scale, any controversial topic can create the same type of problems. This is not a reason for us to shy away from discussing them. It actually highlights a dire need for us to engage in these conversations.

At this time of reflection, ten years after a tragedy that without a doubt changed this nation and the world, it is important that interpreters not be afraid to embrace the difficult conversations. Maybe you will not know the outcome when the conversation begins-after all, each person involved will bring their own stories and their own emotional connections-but the conversation itself may be the most important part, for all of us.

- Kevin Damstra