President
Joyce B. Wale, ACSW

Executive Director
Carolyn Beauchamp, ACSW

Terrorist Attacks on the United States: The Day After

By Joanie Connors, Ph.D.

In the aftermath of yesterday's terrorist attacks, we are all struggling to absorb and process the news and our emotions. So, as someone who has studied the psychology of terrorism, I offer these thoughts.
Remember that we are safe now and that the future depends on us continuing to act with good will and for the betterment of all. We are in good hands.

Thousands have acted heroically and responsibly in the rescue effort, and some have given their lives to save others. Reports indicate that the majority of people on the lower floors of the World Trade Center were evacuated safely before the collapse, and that people were cooperative during the evacuation.

This is a time to truly appreciate our governments, and those who work in them to provide our security. We also can remember to appreciate how our daily lives depend on others doing their part, as well as to appreciate those we care for.

The United States is a very strong country that will recover from this and eventually learn from this. This tragedy also will require higher levels of collaboration and communication between nations and heads of state.

We must keep in mind that a very small group of people committed this act and that it does not represent an act of war by a state, by the Arab peoples or by Islamic peoples. If perhaps this was done in the name of the Palestinian people, they did not ask for it any more than anyone asked for the Oklahoma City bombing.

We also must keep in mind that hate and revenge are what created this tragedy, and that to give way to hate and revenge is to let this tragedy demean and lessen us.

Understanding something this massive and monstrous will take a long time, and the dialogue we will engage in about this will be healthy and worthwhile. This dialogue also will be revealing about the current state of national and international problem-solving and relations.

There will be much we can learn about the state of the world and the way to peace from this. Unfortunately, it will be a long, long road and there is much sadness and terrible grief to bear in the meantime.

Each one of us individually, and all of us collectively, can now make a decision as to what we can, should and will do in responding to this horrible event.

What can we as individuals do?

1. Donate blood ... we were already critically low.
2. In our own ways, pray for the victims, their loved ones, the country and the world.
3. Use the phone system sparingly.
4. Talk calmly with our children and make them feel as safe as possible.
5. Stay calm and maintain our normal lives as much as possible. (But not in denial.)

Hate caused this disaster; more hate will not make it go away.