Media and the Creation of Memory: A Sobering Reminder

/

Twenty-four hours ago Canada was attacked for the second time in under one week. The tragic events saw Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, a 24-year-old reservist from Hamilton’s Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada regiment, shot and killed while standing on guard at National War Memorial that is located just steps from Parliament Hill. This, after Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent was killed earlier in the week in what Prime Minister Stephen Harper has called an ISIL-inspired terrorist attack. In a public statement yesterday, Harper said the federal government will “take all necessary steps to identify and counter threats and keep Canada safe,” to “strengthen our resolve” and to work with our allies in the fight against terrorism and terrorist organizations. Showing their support and backing the prime minister’s stand that Canada “will never be intimidated,” parliamentarians, staffers and others have returned to work on Parliament Hill this morning.

Read More

Creating a History of 9/11

/

Today marks the thirteenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the United States. Since the attacks themselves, many Americans have vacillated over how to commemorate the events that killed roughly 3,000 people and inflicted billions of dollars in damages. Just as important, the consequences of these events have had a global reach and affected innumerable people. In this sense, the war on terror, which includes the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 and ongoing operations against al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan, was a direct consequence of 9/11. Any discussion of those events is bound to elicit emotional responses, particularly as the attacks are relatively recent.

Read More