Rory Murray’s husband John worked in the North Tower of the World Trade Center. On the morning of September 11, 2001, he was running late for work and almost missed the ferry from Hoboken, New Jersey to Manhattan. Later that morning, the hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 was flown into … Continue reading
Survivors of the Washington Navy Yard shooting on September 16, 2012 recall their experiences: “First it sounded like a grenade. Then we hear the ‘pow pow pow pow!’” Lone gunman, Aaron Alexis, fatally shot twelve and wounded another three before being killed by police. One survivor, John Weaver, describes witnessing … Continue reading
“No one saw it coming.” On September 16, 2013, Aaron Alexis opened fire at the Washington Navy Yard. Before being killed by police, Alexis fatally shot twelve and wounded three others. In this video, those who knew Aaron Alexis react with disbelief to learning that he was the shooter: “He was … Continue reading
The 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama was bombed on the morning of September 15, 1963. Ahmad Ward puts it succinctly, “Kids are supposed to be safe at church. This isn’t supposed to happen in America.” The bomb killed four teenage girls in an attack that was quickly identified … Continue reading
“It was a frightening time if you were a young person growing up because you never knew what the day would bring.” Reverend Carolyn McKinstry’s words describe the climate of Birmingham, Alabama on September 15, 1963. On that Sunday morning, a bomb blew up the 16th Street Baptist church while … Continue reading
Grammy-award winning artist and New York city resident Questlove, born Ahmir Khalib Thompson, speaks about hearing the news on the morning of September 11, 2001, and its impact on him. During the first couple of weeks following 9/11, he says he “never felt like a third class citizen.” Weeks later, … Continue reading
Shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks began, Amer Ahmed remembers thinking, “I hope this wasn’t a Muslim.” As the spokesman for the Muslim Student Union at Indiana University, Amer recounts the harrowing experience of being a voice for a community that instantly made him a target of suspicion. Since 9/11, … Continue reading
In this compilation video, Witnify interviewed witnesses and other victims of the September 11 attacks in New York City. In 2001, Al-Qaeda-affiliated hijackers flew two planes into each of the two towers of the World Trade Center complex–an act of terrorism that killed 2,753 people. Check out our featured page … Continue reading
Resident of Minnesota, Decontee Sawyer became a widow after her husband Patrick Sawyer died from the Ebola virus disease during the 2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak. Sawyer speaks on how her husband contracted the virus. She believes Patrick, while traveling to Nigeria for his work, got it while taking care … Continue reading
Between the years of 1966 and 1976, Chinese Chairman Mao Zedong helped to lead what is now known as the Cultural Revolution. This was a time when his Communist Party was worried that capitalistic beliefs were going to take over Chinese society. Because of this threat, Mao Zedong and his … Continue reading
