Is Gen Z influenced by 9/11? Local students and professor talk

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) – There is no question about it: the heartbreaking events of September 11, 2001 that claimed 2,977 lives changed the American way of life. While these events are still very vivid to many, an emerging generation of young adults have no memory of it.

Dr. Stephen Voss, professor of political science at the University of Kentucky, says his youngest students hadn’t even been born yet.

“To people who were alive and aware when 9/11 hit, they have memories of planes crashing and burning buildings–that was a major event to them, one that they may never forget. It’s hard for them to wrap their heads around the fact that today’s college students–the younger ones–weren’t even alive, let alone able to have a memory of 9/11,” said Dr. Voss.

Voss says for Gen Z, the generation that is typically characterized as being born between 1997 and 2012, the events of 9/11 were taught as history, and are too far removed to influence their social and political ideologies.

“Growing up, I heard about it as being one of the first really tragic events that happened on our soil and I always thought that it shaped how our security as a nation changed afterwards,” said University of Kentucky student Saige Miracle.

According to students themselves, Gen Z understands the weight of the events of 9/11, but doesn’t see the tragedy as a large part of their worldview.

“I know that for older people, they definitely remember where they were at and stuff like that, but as I said, I was only like, 1 at the time…definitely not something to take lightly, for sure,” said University of Kentucky student Nathan Welch.

Dr. Voss says the events following 9/11, such as the Iraq Wars and the 2008 Great Recession, have influenced Gen Z’s ideology more, but the defining moment that will influence their generation’s social and political ideologies hasn’t come yet.

“The social and cultural changes of the last thirty years really took root with young people. But in terms of their broader ideology, they’re not well formed yet. The “I” Gen or Gen Z is still waiting for its defining moments,” said Dr. Voss.