This past week marked the 23rd anniversary of the attack by Al Qaeda hijackers crashing two planes into the Twin Towers in New York, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania. Kamala Harris and Donald Trump both attended the ceremonies commemorating those lost.

This year the ceremony in New York took place not only against the backdrop of one of the most crucial elections ever facing this country, but in the context of growing movements for peace, challenging the military might of US empire. These movements, fueled by the courageous challenges to US military support of Israel, are the first real questionings of US military power since 9/11. Public attitude and polices combined in the aftermath of the attacks to effectively silence criticism of US corporate greed and use of military force to advance state interests. These movements today are challenging the powers of government to attack those whose conscience moves them to object to US policies. And they are challenging concept of the US military empire.

It was in reaction to 9/11 that the US Congress passed the Patriot Act. This act was the beginning of a series of laws that expanded the ability of the government to conduct domestic surveillance. These powers have been accentuated by advances in technological capabilities. In an article published by the Brennan Center for Justice, Elizabeth Goiten wrote in 2021, 

“We have seen a transformation, in two short decades, from a legal framework that requires the government to obtain a warrant when acquiring Americans’ most sensitive data to one that allows the government to amass such information without any suspicion of wrongdoing whatsoever. We also have seen the results. Easy governmental access to the private lives of law-abiding citizens has proven to have scant national security benefit, while enabling the monitoring of racial and religious minorities, protesters, and political opponents.”

The need for reimaging US relationships to our global neighbors has never been more critical. The need for robust public debate, historical perspective, and questioning are essential to this rethinking.

The policies of the Biden administration are moving us ever closer to open world war. For example, the day after the ceremonies of 9/11, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken suggested that the US will lift restrictions on Ukraine’s use of missiles to support long range strikes into Russian territory. This decision is likely to push Russia closer to China and to seeing this as an expansion of war between Russia and NATO countries.

Neither of the candidates for President appear to have any understanding of the shifting global situation. The most disappointing moment in the Harris-Trump debate came in response to their positions on the arming of Israel and the war crimes in Gaza. Ms. Harris began her understanding of the context of this war with the attacks on October 7. 

Such a short-sightedness does little to help us consider why so much of the world sees the US as a threat. It does nothing to help us understand how our actions are fueling intense hatred and suspicion of the US around the globe. 

It does nothing to help Americans understand that the US inspires danger and death, not freedom and hope. 

Much of the world recognizes that what is happening in Gaza, and in all of the places where the US is backing violence over diplomacy and peace, is bringing us closer to global war. It is using force to protect the power and privilege of a few at the expense of much of the rest of the world.  We are facing not only a political and military crisis, but a profoundly moral and existential one. We need more than a new generation of leaders, we need a new understanding of our responsibilities as global citizens to creating a world of safety, peace, and justice.