A changed nation

~ Editor's note: One event. Two views. As the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks approaches, America is of two minds about the attacks' significance. Some say the event profoundly altered American society. Some say that, all in all, the attacks did not change much. In the first of two parts, the Southeast Missourian looks at how the world has changed since the attacks.

Five years after terrorists turned Sept. 11 into a date of infamy, marked by death and destruction from hijacked planes, Americans still struggle with a security fallout.

It manifests itself in everything from increased airport security to presidential politics.

For most Americans, the world seems less safe, said Cape Girardeau clinical psychologist Debra Rau. Until the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, most people felt the nation was immune to such violence.

"I don't believe people realized that something like that could happen in a blink of an eye," she said.

Nearly 3,000 people died in the terrorist attacks.

The nation responded with new security measures. Airplane passengers can't board flights without first taking off their shoes in front of security personnel. Bags are routinely checked for explosives.

From metal detectors at amusement parks to inspections of purses at stadiums, Americans routinely undergo security checks, a visible reminder of how the tragedy of Sept. 11 continues to affect the life of the nation.

It has also affected America's Muslims, who feel more scrutinized by both airport security officers and ordinary Americans.

"Especially in an airport, people are looking at you," said Dr. Zulekha Reza, a Dexter, Mo., pediatrician and Muslim. Like many women of her faith, she wears a head scarf.

Reza worries about political rhetoric that equates Muslims with terrorists.

Muslims, she said, find it increasingly hard to give to Muslim charities because they've been accused by the federal government of funneling money to terrorist groups. Reza believes many charities have been wrongly accused.

"Unfortunately a lot of charitable organizations have been closed down. Muslims have been finding it very difficult to help other Muslim brothers," she said.

Since Sept. 11, the United States has tightened immigration procedures. It's harder for Muslims to enter the country, she said. "What used to take 24 months now takes 48 months or more."

Both Reza and her husband are from India. They've lived in the United States since 1993 and in Dexter since 1997. But after Sept. 11, 2001, it took two years for them to get their green cards to become legal, permanent residents of the United States. Prior to that, they had work permits.

Reza and her husband, also a doctor, have no complaints about how they've been treated in Dexter in the aftermath of the attacks.

"We were pleasantly surprised by the number of calls we received from both patients and nonpatients asking us how we were doing. It was very, very nice," she said.

Her son, a second-grader, is the only Muslim in the elementary school. Reza said her son has been treated well by both teachers and students. "He is proud to be an American and proud to be a Muslim," she said.

For most Americans, the most visible signs of the war on terrorism are at the nation's airports. Bags and passengers are screened by federal Transportation Security Administration officers even at small airports like the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport.

Bruce Loy, Cape Girardeau airport manager, said the nation's beefed up security efforts have focused on aviation.

"By far, it is the hardest hit," he said.

Security has affected more than passengers. Private pilots have to abide by more rules as well. "We have a lot of restrictions on the airspace where we can fly," Loy said.

"You can't fly over football games and baseball games. You can't get anywhere near certain landmarks."

The attacks of Sept. 11 have transformed the political landscape too.

President Bush launched the war on terrorism, sending troops to Afghanistan and Iraq. Congress established the Department of Homeland Security.

Americans can't ignore the war, said political science professor Dr. Russell Renka. Its presence is a constant in American politics and in the media.

American troops continue to die in combat against a ruthless enemy that hides among civilians and wreaks havoc with roadside bombs. Terrorism's carnage is displayed on television newscasts and on the front pages of the nation's newspapers.

"Every attack that is successful somewhere in the world puts a new shiver of fear into us," Renka said.

Security concerns have provoked constitutional issues.

"It has changed the way the Constitution is treated by the president and his people," Renka said. Suspected terrorists have been held indefinitely without trial, he said.

In the name of security, the federal government has increasingly restricted public access to government documents, he said.

Amid all the talk about security, Congress has handed out anti-terrorism grants to law enforcement and emergency response agencies in communities nationwide. Some critics view it as pork-barrel politics rather than a reasoned response to terrorism.

While security measures spark debate, Renka said, most Americans are willing to accept the need for some increased security.

"I think overall people are accepting and accommodating," he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123

Coming Monday: Some say Sept. 11 changed nothing.