A new generation reckons with 9/11

I don’t remember the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but I do vaguely remember the world before. My earliest memory on an aeroplane is from 2000, when I was four. At some point during the flight, my sister and I were taken to see the cockpit and meet the pilots. It was a common experience for kids back then, one that seems unimaginable now.

The next travel memory I have is from a year later, standing in a seemingly endless line at airport security. Everyone’s bags were being searched thoroughly; every sharp item was confiscated. The world as we knew it had fundamentally changed.

I was born in 1996, the year generally considered the final birth year for Millennials, with Gen Z beginning in 1997. The event that most clearly separates the two generations is 9/11.

People born around that cutoff make up a small in-between generation often referred to as “Zillennials.” We occupy an unusual space in the 9/11 timeline: we can remember the world before it, but not necessarily the moment that changed it. For those who came after us, however, the event feels more like distant history.

As the 25th anniversary brought 9/11 back into the cultural conversation, that generational difference became especially visible online.

Across social media, I saw four distinct reactions: antisemitic conspiracy theories about Jews and Israel; anger towards Palestinians and pro-Palestine protesters; dark mockery of 9/11, tied to the first anniversary of Charlie Kirk’s death; and, beneath all that noise, a genuine effort among Gen Z to understand the tragedy.

One of the most disturbing reactions was the return of antisemitic conspiracies.