Do People Ever Worry 9/11 Could Happen Again
2 Decades Later, the Enduring Legacy of 9/11
Americans watched in horror as the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, left nearly 3,000 people dead in New York Metropolis, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Nearly 20 years later on, they watched in sorrow equally the nation's military mission in Afghanistan – which began less than a month subsequently 9/11 – came to a bloody and chaotic conclusion.
The enduring power of the Sept. 11 attacks is clear: An overwhelming share of Americans who are onetime enough to recall the solar day remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. Even so an ever-growing number of Americans have no personal memory of that day, either considering they were as well young or not yet born.
A review of U.Due south. public opinion in the two decades since ix/11 reveals how a badly shaken nation came together, briefly, in a spirit of sadness and patriotism; how the public initially rallied backside the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, though back up waned over time; and how Americans viewed the threat of terrorism at home and the steps the government took to combat it.
As the country comes to grips with the tumultuous leave of U.S. military machine forces from Afghanistan, the departure has raised long-term questions about U.S. foreign policy and America's place in the world. Still the public's initial judgments on that mission are articulate: A majority endorses the decision to withdraw from Transitional islamic state of afghanistan, even every bit information technology criticizes the Biden administration'south handling of the situation. And after a war that cost thousands of lives – including more 2,000 American service members – and trillions of dollars in military spending, a new Pew Enquiry Middle survey finds that 69% of U.S. adults say the United States has mostly failed to achieve its goals in Afghanistan.
This examination of how the United States inverse in the two decades post-obit the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks is based on an analysis of past public opinion survey data from Pew Research Center, news reports and other sources.
Current information is from a Pew Enquiry Center survey of 10,348 U.S. adults conducted Aug. 23-29, 2021. Most of the interviewing was conducted earlier the Aug. 26 suicide bombing at Kabul aerodrome, and all of it was conducted earlier the completion of the evacuation. Everyone who took part is a member of the Center'south American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. This mode nearly all U.South. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to exist representative of the U.S. adult population past gender, race, ethnicity, partisan amalgamation, education and other categories. Read more than about the ATP's methodology.
Here are the questions used for the report, along with responses, and its methodology.
A devastating emotional price, a lasting historical legacy
Stupor, sadness, fear, anger: The 9/11 attacks inflicted a devastating emotional price on Americans. Merely as horrible as the events of that day were, a 63% bulk of Americans said they couldn't stop watching news coverage of the attacks.
Our showtime survey following the attacks went into the field just days after nine/11, from Sept. xiii-17, 2001. A sizable bulk of adults (71%) said they felt depressed, nearly half (49%) had difficulty concentrating and a third said they had trouble sleeping.
It was an era in which television was still the public's dominant news source – ninety% said they got most of their news most the attacks from television, compared with simply 5% who got news online – and the televised images of death and destruction had a powerful affect. Around nine-in-ten Americans (92%) agreed with the argument, "I feel sad when watching Tv set coverage of the terrorist attacks." A sizable majority (77%) as well found information technology frightening to watch – but about did and then anyhow.
Americans were enraged past the attacks, also. Three weeks later 9/11, even as the psychological stress began to ease somewhat, 87% said they felt angry about the attacks on the World Merchandise Middle and Pentagon.
Fear was widespread, not only in the days immediately later the attacks, but throughout the fall of 2001. Most Americans said they were very (28%) or somewhat (45%) worried near another attack. When asked a twelvemonth afterward to describe how their lives inverse in a major way, about half of adults said they felt more afraid, more conscientious, more distrustful or more vulnerable as a result of the attacks.
Even after the firsthand shock of 9/11 had subsided, concerns over terrorism remained at higher levels in major cities – specially New York and Washington – than in modest towns and rural areas. The personal touch on of the attacks also was felt more keenly in the cities straight targeted: Nearly a twelvemonth afterward nine/11, nearly six-in-ten adults in the New York (61%) and Washington (63%) areas said the attacks had changed their lives at to the lowest degree a little, compared with 49% nationwide. This sentiment was shared by residents of other big cities. A quarter of people who lived in large cities nationwide said their lives had changed in a major way – twice the rate institute in pocket-sized towns and rural areas.
The impacts of the Sept. 11 attacks were deeply felt and slow to misemploy. By the following August, half of U.S. adults said the country "had changed in a major way" – a number that actually increased, to 61%, 10 years after the consequence.
A year later the attacks, in an open-ended question, virtually Americans – lxxx% – cited 9/11 as the most of import event that had occurred in the state during the previous year. Strikingly, a larger share as well volunteered it equally the virtually of import matter that happened to them personally in the prior year (38%) than mentioned other typical life events, such as births or deaths. Again, the personal touch was much greater in New York and Washington, where 51% and 44%, respectively, pointed to the attacks as the most significant personal consequence over the prior year.
Just every bit memories of 9/11 are firmly embedded in the minds of most Americans erstwhile plenty to recall the attacks, their historical importance far surpasses other events in people'southward lifetimes. In a survey conducted by Pew Research Center in clan with A+E Networks' HISTORY in 2016 – 15 years after ix/11 – 76% of adults named the Sept. 11 attacks every bit ane of the ten historical events of their lifetime that had the greatest bear upon on the country. The ballot of Barack Obama as the first Black president was a distant second, at 40%.
The importance of 9/11 transcended age, gender, geographic and even political differences. The 2016 study noted that while partisans agreed on footling else that ballot cycle, more than 7-in-ten Republicans and Democrats named the attacks as one of their elevation 10 historic events.
9/eleven transformed U.South. public opinion, but many of its impacts were short-lived
It is hard to call up of an event that and so profoundly transformed U.S. public opinion across so many dimensions as the nine/xi attacks. While Americans had a shared sense of anguish afterward Sept. 11, the months that followed also were marked past rare spirit of public unity.
Patriotic sentiment surged in the backwash of nine/11. After the U.S. and its allies launched airstrikes against Taliban and al-Qaida forces in early October 2001, 79% of adults said they had displayed an American flag. A yr later, a 62% majority said they had often felt patriotic as a result of the 9/xi attacks.
Moreover, the public largely set aside political differences and rallied in support of the nation's major institutions, likewise every bit its political leadership. In Oct 2001, threescore% of adults expressed trust in the federal government – a level not reached in the previous three decades, nor approached in the two decades since then.
George W. Bush, who had become president nine months before after a fiercely contested election, saw his job approving ascension 35 percentage points in the infinite of three weeks. In late September 2001, 86% of adults – including nearly all Republicans (96%) and a sizable majority of Democrats (78%) – approved of the mode Bush was handling his task every bit president.
Americans also turned to religion and religion in big numbers. In the days and weeks after 9/11, most Americans said they were praying more ofttimes. In November 2001, 78% said religion'southward influence in American life was increasing, more than than double the share who said that eight months earlier and – like public trust in the federal government – the highest level in iv decades.
Public esteem rose even for some institutions that usually are non that popular with Americans. For instance, in November 2001, news organizations received tape-loftier ratings for professionalism. Effectually 7-in-ten adults (69%) said they "stand up for America," while 60% said they protected democracy.
Yet in many ways, the "9/11 consequence" on public opinion was curt-lived. Public trust in government, as well every bit confidence in other institutions, declined throughout the 2000s. By 2005, following another major national tragedy – the government's mishandling of the relief effort for victims of Hurricane Katrina – simply 31% said they trusted the federal regime, one-half the share who said so in the months after 9/11. Trust has remained relatively low for the by two decades: In April of this year, but 24% said they trusted the government just near always or most of the time.
Bush's approval ratings, meanwhile, never once again reached the lofty heights they did soon after nine/11. By the end of his presidency, in Dec 2008, just 24% approved of his job operation.
U.Due south. military response: Afghanistan and Iraq
With the U.S. now formally out of Afghanistan – and with the Taliban firmly in control of the country – most Americans (69%) say the U.South. failed in achieving its goals in Transitional islamic state of afghanistan.
Merely 20 years ago, in the days and weeks following 9/eleven, Americans overwhelmingly supported military action against those responsible for the attacks. In mid-September 2001, 77% favored U.S. military activeness, including the deployment of footing forces, "to retaliate against whoever is responsible for the terrorist attacks, fifty-fifty if that ways U.Due south. military machine might endure thousands of casualties."
Many Americans were impatient for the Bush-league administration to requite the go-ahead for military activity. In a late September 2001 survey, almost one-half the public (49%) said their larger business concern was that the Bush administration would non strike speedily plenty against the terrorists; just 34% said they worried the administration would move besides apace.
Even in the early stages of the U.S. war machine response, few adults expected a military operation to produce quick results: 69% said it would take months or years to dismantle terrorist networks, including 38% who said information technology would take years and 31% who said it would take several months. But eighteen% said it would have days or weeks.
The public's support for armed forces intervention was evident in other ways also. Throughout the fall of 2001, more Americans said the all-time style to prevent future terrorism was to have war machine action abroad rather than build up defenses at home. In early October 2001, 45% prioritized military activity to destroy terrorist networks around the world, while 36% said the priority should be to build terrorism defenses at home.
Initially, the public was confident that the U.S. armed forces effort to destroy terrorist networks would succeed. A sizable majority (76%) was confident in the success of this mission, with 39% saying they were very confident.
Support for the state of war in Transitional islamic state of afghanistan continued at a high level for several years to come. In a survey conducted in early 2002, a few months later the start of the war, 83% of Americans said they approved of the U.S.-led armed forces campaign against the Taliban and al-Qaida in Afghanistan. In 2006, several years afterward the Usa began combat operations in Afghanistan, 69% of adults said the U.S. made the correct determination in using military force in Afghanistan. Only two-in-ten said information technology was the incorrect decision.
Simply equally the conflict dragged on, first through Bush's presidency and so through Obama's assistants, support wavered and a growing share of Americans favored the withdrawal of U.Southward. forces from Afghanistan. In June 2009, during Obama'south commencement year in office, 38% of Americans said U.S. troops should exist removed from Transitional islamic state of afghanistan as soon as possible. The share favoring a speedy troop withdrawal increased over the side by side few years. A turning bespeak came in May 2011, when U.S. Navy SEALs launched a risky operation against Osama bin Laden's compound in Pakistan and killed the al-Qaida leader.
The public reacted to bin Laden's expiry with more of a sense of relief than jubilation. A month later, for the beginning time, a majority of Americans (56%) said that U.Due south. forces should be brought home as soon every bit possible, while 39% favored U.S. forces in the country until the situation had stabilized.
Over the next decade, U.South. forces in Transitional islamic state of afghanistan were gradually fatigued down, in fits and starts, over the administrations of 3 presidents – Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Meanwhile, public back up for the conclusion to use forcefulness in Afghanistan, which had been widespread at the beginning of the conflict, declined. Today, subsequently the tumultuous exit of U.S. troops from Transitional islamic state of afghanistan, a slim majority of adults (54%) say the conclusion to withdraw troops from the country was the right decision; 42% say it was the wrong decision.
There was a similar trajectory in public attitudes toward a much more expansive conflict that was function of what Bush termed the "war on terror": the U.S. war in Iraq. Throughout the contentious, yearlong debate before the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Americans widely supported the utilise of military forcefulness to end Saddam Hussein'due south rule in Iraq.
Importantly, about Americans thought – erroneously, as it turned out – at that place was a straight connection betwixt Saddam Hussein and the 9/11 attacks. In October 2002, 66% said that Saddam helped the terrorists involved in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon.
In April 2003, during the first month of the Iraq State of war, 71% said the U.Due south. made the right decision to go to war in Iraq. On the 15th anniversary of the war in 2018, just 43% said it was the right decision. As with the instance with U.S. involvement in Afghanistan, more Americans said that the U.S. had failed (53%) than succeeded (39%) in achieving its goals in Republic of iraq.
The 'new normal': The threat of terrorism afterward 9/eleven
At that place have been no terrorist attacks on the scale of nine/xi in 2 decades, but from the public's perspective, the threat has never fully gone away. Defending the country from future terrorist attacks has been at or most the top of Pew Research Heart's almanac survey on policy priorities since 2002.
In January 2002, just months afterward the 2001 attacks, 83% of Americans said "defending the state from future terrorist attacks" was a top priority for the president and Congress, the highest for any issue. Since and so, sizable majorities accept continued to cite that equally a peak policy priority.
Majorities of both Republicans and Democrats have consistently ranked terrorism every bit a height priority over the by two decades, with some exceptions. Republicans and Republican-leaning independents take remained more likely than Democrats and Autonomous leaners to say defending the land from future attacks should be a top priority. In recent years, the partisan gap has grown larger as Democrats began to rank the event lower relative to other domestic concerns.
The public's concerns near another attack besides remained fairly steady in the years after ix/eleven, through near-misses and the federal regime's numerous "Orange Alerts" – the second-most serious threat level on its color-coded terrorism warning system.
A 2010 analysis of the public'southward terrorism concerns found that the share of Americans who said they were very concerned about another attack had ranged from nearly fifteen% to roughly 25% since 2002. The only time when concerns were elevated was in February 2003, shortly before the start of the U.S. war in Iraq.
In recent years, the share of Americans who betoken to terrorism as a major national problem has declined sharply equally issues such as the economy, the COVID-19 pandemic and racism have emerged as more pressing bug in the public's eyes.
In 2016, about half of the public (53%) said terrorism was a very big national problem in the land. This declined to about four-in-ten from 2017 to 2019. Last year, only a quarter of Americans said that terrorism was a very big trouble.
This year, prior to the U.South. withdrawal of forces from Transitional islamic state of afghanistan and the subsequent Taliban takeover of the land, a somewhat larger share of adults said domestic terrorism was a very big national trouble (35%) than said the same virtually international terrorism. But much larger shares cited concerns such as the affordability of health care (56%) and the federal upkeep deficit (49%) every bit major problems than said that about either domestic or international terrorism.
Still, recent events in Afghanistan enhance the possibility that opinion could be changing, at least in the curt term. In a late August survey, 89% of Americans said the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan was a threat to the security of the U.Due south., including 46% who said it was a major threat.
Addressing the threat of terrorism at abode and away
Just as Americans largely endorsed the use of U.Southward. military force as a response to the 9/11 attacks, they were initially open to a variety of other far-reaching measures to combat terrorism at home and abroad. In the days post-obit the set on, for example, majorities favored a requirement that all citizens carry national ID cards, allowing the CIA to contract with criminals in pursuing suspected terrorists and permitting the CIA to bear assassinations overseas when pursuing suspected terrorists.
Still, most people drew the line against allowing the government to monitor their own emails and phone calls (77% opposed this). And while 29% supported the establishment of internment camps for legal immigrants from unfriendly countries during times of tension or crisis – along the lines of those in which thousands of Japanese American citizens were confined during Earth War II – 57% opposed such a mensurate.
It was articulate that from the public'due south perspective, the residuum betwixt protecting civil liberties and protecting the land from terrorism had shifted. In September 2001 and January 2002, 55% majorities said that, in order to curb terrorism in the U.S., it was necessary for the average citizen to requite upward some civil liberties. In 1997, just 29% said this would be necessary while 62% said it would not.
For most of the next ii decades, more Americans said their bigger concern was that the authorities had non gone far plenty in protecting the country from terrorism than said information technology went too far in restricting civil liberties.
The public also did not rule out the use of torture to extract information from terrorist suspects. In a 2015 survey of twoscore nations, the U.S. was 1 of only 12 where a majority of the public said the apply of torture confronting terrorists could be justified to gain information about a possible attack.
Views of Muslims, Islam grew more partisan in years after nine/11
Concerned about a possible backlash against Muslims in the U.S. in the days after 9/11, and so-President George W. Bush gave a speech to the Islamic Eye in Washington, D.C., in which he declared: "Islam is peace." For a brief menses, a large segment of Americans agreed. In November 2001, 59% of U.South. adults had a favorable view of Muslim Americans, upwardly from 45% in March 2001, with comparable majorities of Democrats and Republicans expressing a favorable opinion.
This spirit of unity and comity was not to last. In a September 2001 survey, 28% of adults said they had grown more suspicious of people of Middle Eastern descent; that grew to 36% less than a year later.
Republicans, in particular, increasingly came to associate Muslims and Islam with violence. In 2002, just a quarter of Americans – including 32% of Republicans and 23% of Democrats – said Islam was more than probable than other religions to encourage violence among its believers. Near twice as many (51%) said it was non.
But within the next few years, most Republicans and GOP leaners said Islam was more likely than other religions to encourage violence. Today, 72% of Republicans express this view, co-ordinate to an August 2021 survey.
Democrats consistently have been far less likely than Republicans to associate Islam with violence. In the Eye's latest survey, 32% of Democrats say this. Notwithstanding, Democrats are somewhat more probable to say this today than they have been in recent years: In 2019, 28% of Democrats said Islam was more likely than other religions to encourage violence among its believers than other religions.
The partisan gap in views of Muslims and Islam in the U.South. is axiomatic in other meaningful ways. For example, a 2017 survey found that half of U.S. adults said that "Islam is non office of mainstream American society" – a view held by near seven-in-ten Republicans (68%) but only 37% of Democrats. In a separate survey conducted in 2017, 56% of Republicans said in that location was a great deal or fair amount of extremism among U.Southward. Muslims, with fewer than half equally many Democrats (22%) saying the aforementioned.
The rise of anti-Muslim sentiment in the aftermath of 9/11 has had a profound effect on the growing number of Muslims living in the United states. Surveys of U.S. Muslims from 2007-2017 constitute increasing shares proverb they take personally experienced discrimination and received public expression of back up.
It has now been two decades since the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon and the crash of Flight 93 – where only the courage of passengers and crew possibly prevented an even deadlier terror attack.
For most who are old enough to remember, it is a 24-hour interval that is incommunicable to forget. In many means, 9/11 reshaped how Americans think of state of war and peace, their own personal rubber and their fellow citizens. And today, the violence and chaos in a country half a world away brings with it the opening of an uncertain new affiliate in the post-9/eleven era.
Source: https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2021/09/02/two-decades-later-the-enduring-legacy-of-9-11/
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