The intense clarity of the morning sky here on the Island yesterday reminded me of that moment in American history that changed everything on Sept. 11, 2001. On this 23rd anniversary, at 8 am, about the time the first plane struck the towers, I was waiting for a call from Kenneth Feinberg, who lives in Lambert’s Cove, and who knows as much as anyone about what America lost that day.
Back then in 2001, just like the glorious weather we had yesterday, there was a perfect cobalt blue sky and pleasant temperatures in New York City. There was an innocent serenity on that Sept. morning in America back then, as kids were getting back to school, and we all were transitioning out of the slower pace of summer with lots of work to do.
All of us who are of a certain age can remember exactly where we were when the news began to become clear that America had been attacked, and a perfect morning turned into one of the darkest days in American history. Two planes crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, and then a third hijacked plane slammed into the Pentagon, and a fourth was taken down by passengers who overtook the hijackers in Shanksville, Pa.
In an instant, American invincibility seemed to vanish. Suddenly we were all painfully aware of just how vulnerable even a country with the greatest military in the world is to terrorism. I was the Boston Globe Middle East bureau chief back then, and transitioning to a new post in London after covering the emergence of Al-Qaeda and the fires of the region for the previous eight years. By Sept. 19, 2001, I was on my way to Afghanistan as one of the first journalists to start reporting from the ground, as the U.S. prepared to start missile strikes, and then launch the war which would end up being America’s longest war in its history.
Before I left to be on the frontlines of the first war of the 21st century, I will never forget watching as night began to fall on that horrific day of Sept. 11, when every member of Congress — every Democrat and Republican — stood shoulder to shoulder on the steps of the Capitol, putting country over party, and singing “God Bless America.” It brought tears to my eyes then, and it still does, particularly as we reflect on how divided we are as a country and how those same steps of the Capitol were the scene of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection inspired by President Trump after losing the election to Joe Biden.
To remember 9/11 and those victims of the attack, and to reflect on what that anniversary means this year, at a time of deep division within the U.S, and when the fires of conflict in the Middle East are raging as intensely as they ever have in the more than 30 years I have been reporting there, I wanted to talk to Kenneth Feinberg, who may just be the most perfect person I know to understand where we are as a country today. Ken, as he is known here on the Island, was the special master of the U.S. government’s Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund. Ken is a globally respected attorney who has long been called upon by U.S. presidents, families, and survivors to navigate payouts following mass tragedies. He started his career as a settlement specialist for Agent Orange after Vietnam, but he is renowned for his leadership in overseeing the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund (VCF), where he served families for 33 months pro bono. By mid-November, 2001, Congress established the fund to compensate the thousands of people who lost a loved one or suffered a physical injury. Feinberg distributed more than $7 billion to victim’s families.
Here on Martha’s Vineyard, Ken, 78, is known as a fixture on the porch at Conroy’s pharmacy on most summer mornings, or walking the beach at Lambert’s Cove, or attending the M.V. Hebrew Center or Chabad on the Vineyard, where he and his wife, Diane, celebrate their faith with family and friends.
We spoke yesterday about how to understand this 9/11 anniversary, and he offered invaluable wisdom and healing words:
“There are so many young people who were not even alive when it happened. The memorials that were so common years ago have sort of passed into history,” he said.“Now it seems the way to remember is more through a personal reflection.
“That day shook us to our core. Over 20 years later, I still think there is a pervasive sense that we are not invulnerable or immune. We’ve spent decades trying to brace ourselves for a dangerous and uncertain future, and some might say that has caused some errors of judgment in foreign policy. Sen. Kennedy spoke powerfully about this, and about the dangers of going to war in Iraq, as have many others, and it is a warning about war and its consequences that we still have to ponder,” said Ken, referring to Sen. Ted Kennedy, who was among those leading the opposition to attacking Iraq, and whom Ken served as a chief of staff from 1975 to 1980.
He described his work with the victims of 9/11 as a deep honor, and he said he thinks often of that moment in time, back in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, how unified America was.
“There were no red states and no blue states, just one nation in times of a horrible and unprecedented tragedy. We were demonstrating that we are one people in times of tragedy. And we decided to come together to enact a generous compensation program for the victims. Sadly, today I do not think we could get that kind of unity, what I call a communitarian spirit,” he said.
“Looking back, I think we can think of that work as a standard to emulate. This is how we should respond to any threat. It is the highest level of leadership that understands the need for unity, and that promotes civility and a common cause in the worst of times.
“We saw some of this demonstrated by Vice President Harris last night,” he said, referring to the nationally televised presidential debate between Harris and former President Trump.
He added, “She spoke well, I think, when she stated her determination to focus on unity in this country, and when she told President Trump, This election is not about you, or your grievances. This is about how we help our country, how we are going to pull the country together to solve the problems we face.
“Sept. 11th should be remembered as the embodiment of how a nation, and how a community like our Island, can build bridges among us and between us, and it can be over an issue as big as 9/11, or as small as the turf over at the high school football field. If you want a perfect example of how the Vineyard can come together, look at that day that [Sen. Ron] DeSantis dropped off the Venezuelan immigrants,” in what Ken described as a cynical stunt to highlight the important issue of immigration.
He said, “When he did that, we offered an example to each other, to the country, and to the world that this Island comes together to help everyone in this community. That is when we are at our best.”
Charles Sennott is the publisher of The MV Times, and the founder and editor in chief of the GroundTruth Project.
