Few times in the past has the journalist in me yearned to be in a place of interest and managed to get here within minutes. When I woke up on Saturday, I was weirdly conscious of the fact that nine years ago, this day, 19 people who I never knew, affected my life in unthinkable ways. I wanted to be at the place where history was altered, spectacularly.
My ride on the underground subway was just like it would be on any other weekend. At 11 AM it was quiet, not crowded and people didn’t seem to know what was going at ground level above them. But, when you stepped out of the subway station at Park Place, you stepped into a different planet. There were thousands of people in four different rallies noisily voicing various view points. I saw many banners, pamphlets, information literature. I had a camera and audio equipment, which made me an object of specific interest. Everyone wanted to tell me what they felt, how they felt and why they were right.
I patiently listened to as many people as I could (yes, even to those who said Koran should be burnt and that Christ was the only God) and collected literature that they gave me. I was trying to understand each of their points of view. After all, many people there had very little to gain by gathering in Downtown New York on a sunny Saturday and scream out slogans. Many were not representing political parties or any religoius places. (However, many were from NGOs and let’s not get into the complications of how the NGO industry works). The point I am trying to make is that I met many ordinary New Yorkers who felt passionately about their cause. For instance, a group called ‘Raging Grannies’ had a bunch of 70-year-old women who were spreading the message of peace. Another man who believed in Christianity decided to come to Ground Zero and started giving speeches about his view of the religion to a small group that had gathered around him.
The obvious question is do they have to wait for a day like 9/11 to speak up? Well, let us face it. The media also looks for an event like this to give their voices some ears. Imagine going to Ground Zero on 9/11 and not finding anyone talking about issues of September 11th 2001?
Groud Zero itself looked quite unaffected by the chaos around it. The construction at the site was stalled as it was a weekend. But, the tall cranes at the construction site gave a look of condescension. As if to say that they are above all of this. The American flag hoisted across the street from Ground Zero was also unaffected by all of it. It just fluttered away depending on what direction the wind blew towards. In front of the Chambers Street subway station, across Ground Zero, an elderly gentleman was playing a flute melodiously. I saw a girl of not more than 3 years of age approach him. They then enjoyed a nice musical moment together while the world around them shouted and screamed slogans.
Wading through tonnes and tonnes of police barricades, I had finally walked all the way from Ground Zero through the City Park to the Brooklyn Bridge. It is here that the East River calls out to you, if you are looking for a moment of peace.
While returning home, I couldn’t help but salute the democratic sprit of the US, where a protestor can call the US a ‘police state’ standing right in front of a policeman who is out there to provide protection. My country has a similar democratic system, which is abusive at times, ruthless at times, intolerant at times and blatantly insensitive other at times. But, aren’t we all? And what is democracy but a reflection of us?
Raksha Kumar
