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Private Mourning

By Aimee on 9.12.2009

I didn’t post anything yesterday on purpose.  All of the attention surrounding September 11th made me feel weird about sharing anything not related to the events of eight years ago.  And as a Native New Yorker, it feels hard to not engage in the public remembrance.   For me, the events of September 11th are so intertwined with the death of my maternal grandfather, (who passed away in Puerto Rico around that time) that the public mourning feels wrong for me.  I also can’t stomach the separation of the atrocities of that day from the subsequent atrocities committed in our names against the Iraqi people.  I am sorry for all those who lost loved ones on September 11th, and as a result of what happened that day.  But you’ll understand if I choose to grieve in private.

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Author: Aimee has written 6 posts for this blog.

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2 Responses

  1. 1
    Michael Hussey 9.12.2009 at 4:28 pm |

    Aimee, have you read Partygirl’s diary? She wrote about her 9/11 experiences in New York City. Her entries ended up helping many people that suffered through that day. Perhaps you can find comfort in her words.

  2. 2
    aj jenkins 9.12.2009 at 6:15 pm |

    I completely understand your reluctance for public grievance. Although I similarly wish the best to all those who were unfortunate enough to lose a loved one in the tragic events of september 11th, it’s difficult to separate that empathy from the compassion I feel towards all those outside of the first world privilege of the United States who have lost their lives or their loved one’s at the hands of the U.S. military regime.

    Grief, in terms of who visibly receives it, is limited to concentrated places on the globe. The public mourning on 9/11 more often then not seeks to center the narrative of violence on that day — when most of us know that couldn’t be further from the truth.

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