27 Peace Monuments Related to
Terrorist Attacks of September 11, 2001 (9/11)
From Wikipedia: "The September 11 attacks (also referred to as 9/11) were a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda on the United States on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The attacks killed 2,996 people, injured over 6,000 others, and caused at least $10 billion in property & infrastructure damage." Temporary memorials were erected almost immeidately afterwards, and many permanent memorials have been constructed since then.
Right click image to enlarge.
1969 - "The Sphere" (World Peace Monument), Battery Park, New York City, New York (USA). Designed by Fritz Koenig of Germany. Commissioned by Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to symbolize world peace through world trade. Stood in the plaza between the two World Trade Center (WTC) towers. Damaged on September 11, 2001. Left unrepaired & moved to Battery Park as a memorial to victims of 9/11. September 11, 2002, "Mayor Michael Bloomberg joined Afghan President Hamid Karzai & officials from about 90 foreign nations at its base to light an eternal flame. Nearly a decade later, the flame could possibly be snuffed out, and there is no permanent plan for the 25-foot-high structure made of bronze & steel. Officials said [in early April 2012] that it will be removed by the end of the month to make way for renovations to Battery Park. Some family members of those killed have gathered thousands of signatures in an online petition urging officials to incorporate the sculpture into the 9/11 memorial & return it to the spot where it once stood as a centerpiece of a 5-acre plaza."
2001 - Monument to Peace, Demre (Turkey). By Russian artist Gregory Pototsky. "Height, 6 meters, in marble & wood). "A prediction monument. Precisely reflects the twin-towers in New York. This monument became the main object for the film, which was made in the same year. This monument was certainly received rather timidly at first by the people of Turkey, but soon came to understand it's simple sculptural meditation on eternity. This piece was one of the few orders received by the painter/sculptor with absolutely no pre conception or suggestive guidance; he thus had total freedom to create, uncensored, an genius masterpiece in simplicity, courage & absolute art mastery."
September 9, 2001 - Peace Plaza, Tenafly, New Jersey (USA). "Dedicated to world peace just two days before 9/11. Also dedicated to the memory of former Borough Administrator Robert Miller & his wife Elizabeth, both killed in the TWA Flight 800 crash off Long Island in July 1996. Mayor Ann Moscovitz designed the blue granite mural that adorns the plaza & created the quote expressing hope for world peace. At the dedication, which was attended by borough residents, officials & two UN representatives, the ambassador of Hungary warned that America was not immune to terrorism, Moscovitz recalled. 'He said, "You don't realize how you are viewed by the world. The US is going to be the object of terror." Two days later, we were,' Moscovitz said. Four people from Tenafly were killed in the attack on the World Trade Center. A plaque was erected to commemorate their lives & the plaza became, in effect, a combined TWA Flight 800/September 11 Memorial. In the ensuing days, people came from the surrounding area to the plaza with candles. 'They wanted someone to go to, like a support group. So a lot of them came spontaneously to our plaza to share their grief,' Moscovitz said."
2001 - Temporary Monument, Shanksville, Pennsylvania (USA). For victims of Flight 93 which crashed in a field near Shanksville on September 11, 2001.
November 11, 2001 - Ring of Peace, First United Methodist Church, Beech & 2nd Streets, Casper, Wyoming (USA). By Chris Navarro. "You may remember that Matthew Shepherd, a young gay man, was murdered by homophobes in Laramie, Wyoming, in the late 1990s. There's nothing in Laramie to commemorate him, but if you visit the website his parents created, they recommend you see a statue called the Ring of Peace in Casper, that's dedicated first to Matthew, and also to the victims of the Columbine shootings [and 9/11]... a nice idea, but it's just sad how run down and crappy it looks. It was possible for me to take a nice picture of it, but only if I was very careful to crop out almost all the surroundings."
June 9, 2002 - Twin Towers (9/11 Sculpture), American Museum of Science & Energy (AMSE), Oak Ridge, Tennessee (USA). 13-foot scale model of the twin towers at World Trade Center (WTC) in New York City welded from scrap metal by Alex Limor of Limor Steel in Nashville. Photo by EWL.
Started in 2002 - World Peace Monument, Great American Flea Market, Tulsa, Oklahoma (USA). Being constructed by Richard L. Branaman out of bowling balls (as his response to 9/11). As of April 2007, he had collected 849 balls & still needed another 7,586 to build a 21-foot pyramid which he will perch atop a three-legged, 77-foot-tall cement structure to be placed in the middle of the Mingo Road & Admiral Boulevard traffic circle (once part of historic Route 66). According to Branaman, "the World Peace Monument is non-denominational, multi-racial and is not a political statement." Click here for an update as of November 2010.
M E M O R I A L September 11, 2003 - "One World United for Peace," Town Common, Norfolk, Massachusetts (USA). September 11th Memorial. Sculpted by Michael Alfano. Bronze & granite 78"x30"x30". "The sculpture's shape implies that of the World Trade Center. Thirteen figures atop the tower surround & support a globe, symbolizing that peace requires people from around the world to draw together. The sculpture rests on a five-sided base, representing the Pentagon, & the '93' on the firefighter's hat symbolizes the flight number of the hijacked plane that crashed in Pennsylvania. In 2006, the town of Clifton, New Jersey, permanently installed the 9/11 memorial at their Arts Center."
September 11, 2003 - "Freedom Isn't Free," between the DuPage River and the Municipal Center, Napierville, Illinois (USA). Dedicated to the "memory of Commander Dan F. Shanower and the thousands of others who died in the attack." One inscription: "Wall of Faces. Faces created by Naperville school children and molded by local artists to represent the casualties of September 11, 2001."
P
A
R
K
Date? - Appleton Peace Park, Appleton, Newfoundland (Canada). "On Sept. 11, 2001, when the United States abruptly closed its airspace, Gander became a safe harbor for 38 international aircraft, 6,700 passengers and crew, 17 dogs & cats, and a pair of great apes. A town of 10,000, with only 550 hotel rooms, Gander took in 4,800 people, outlying towns took thousands more. From their closets & kitchens, the Newfoundlanders provided blankets & towels, sandwiches & stews for the shelters. They invited passengers home to wash up or sleep... About 100 passengers from 14 countries were cared for in Appleton & in nearby Glenwood... The peace park was kick started with more than $5,000 donated by stranded passengers. A seven-metre long beam from the Twin Towers" in New York City was added in September 2013.
September 11, 2005 - Peace Garden, St. Anthony of Padua Church, Falls Church, Virginia (USA). "Eleven Peace Poles create a dramatic entrance into the sacred space. Christian & Muslim faith communities, as well as public and private schools, helped create the unique poles crafted of various media. Incorporated into their design are symbols of peace from many different cultures." One of 100 "sacred spaces" created by the TKF Foundation 1996-2008.
2001 - "Stronger Than Death," Semipalatinsk City (Kazakhstan). A memorial to the victims of Semipalatinsk nuclear tests (150-km west of Semipalatinsk City). "From 1949 until 1989 the Soviet Union conducted 456 nuclear tests at the Semipalatinsk Test Site. Experiments were conducted on the surface, underground & in the air, with 116 of these being atmospheric tests. Occasional mishaps resulted in dispersion of radioactive materials & leakage of radioactive gases into the environment. Sometimes, residents of nearby villages were warned when an explosion was scheduled. They were advised to stay outside during the blast, since it could topple their houses... Cases of cancer, impotency, leukemia & birth defects skyrocketed within a few years. Babies were born with severe neurological & major bone deformations, some without limbs..." /// Compare "Grief Tear" in New Jersey (USA).
B
O
O
K2011 - "A Place of Remembrance: Official Book of the National September 11 Memorial" By Allison Blais & Lynn Rasic, National Geographic Society (NGS), Washington, DC (USA), pp. 228.
September 11, 2011 - Peace [After 9/11] Memorial Sculpture, Battersea Park, London (England). "Made from 30 foot pieces of World Trade Center steel for the 10 Year Anniversary of September 11." "Brooklyn artist Miya Ando was commissioned to create a September 11th monument for London."
May 25, 2017 - 9/11 & Article 5 Memorial, NATO Headquarters, Brussels (Belgium). Made of 2 sections from World Trade Center. "Ahead of the meeting of the NATO leaders today, German Chancellor Angela Merkel dedicated the Berlin Wall Memorial, and US President Donald Trump [dedicated] the 9/11 & Article 5 Memorial, at NATO’s new headquarters in Brussels. Addressing Allied leaders, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the memorials showed 'NATO will always defend the values on which our Alliance is founded.'" /// Affirming that an attack on any member is an attack on all members, Article 5 is the key principal of NATO. 9/11 is the only time Article 5 has been invoked. Trump did not reaffirm US commitment to Article 5 during his dedicatory speech but criticized 23 of 28 NATO members for failing to spend 2% of GDP on national defense. /// On May 28, Merkel said, “The times in which we could rely fully on others - they are somewhat over [and the result is that] we Europeans must really take our fate into our own hands.”
