United for days after, divided for years since – a story about how we can unite a nation, told through the voices of families who lost loved ones during the 9/11 attacks.

The United States of America was brutally attacked on September 11, 2001. Following these attacks, our nation was united, despite age, race, religion or gender. Years later, the ripple effects of the attacks finds the nation polarized and divided. How, as a nation, do we unite a divided America like the nation was directly following the 9/11 attacks?

Tim Oliver works at Tower One in lower Manhattan at the site of Ground Zero where the Twin Towers once stood. It is now the home of the beautiful 9/11 Memorial. On his way to work each day, Tim walks through the memorial. Those daily walks inspired him to write a book portraying 15 victims of the attacks told through the memories of their families. The book is called “Finding Fifteen”. Based on this book another story was revealed, giving the victims’ families the opportunity to tell a larger story through this documentary.

The attacks on America on September 11th 2001 viciously left 2,977 people murdered and thousands more injured. Families of victims were left confused, concerned and frustrated about the whereabouts of their family members but, despite their overwhelming grief, they felt grateful for the unity felt throughout the nation. Five families, whose loved ones are victims of the 9/11 attacks, recall the events of that day and reflect back on the lives of their loved ones and the unity that was felt throughout the nation. This tragedy, quickly and briefly, united our nation, and then our nation became fearful, polarized and divided.

The victims’ families and a mixture of intellectuals will make the argument that the ripple effects of the attacks on 9/11, brought fear, disunity, anxiety and powerlessness to our nation that continues to this day. They will explain the effects of fear and divide that grow in America, told through a time line of milestones that affected this divide in our nation. Years later, after suffering pain and grief, the families are finally allowing their warm memories to overtake the sad ones. We will ask the families: “What unites us as a nation? We knew the answer on September 12th, the day after we were attacked. Do we know now? How can we get the united feeling back that we had in the aftermath of the horror in 2001?” We will accompany them to a school asking the youngest American citizens—the post 9/11 generation— “What unites us? What makes us Americans?” Collectively, the families believe the solidarity we had as a nation just after these attacks has dissipated and that we are more polarized than ever. Ultimately the families would like to see America united again. This documentary will call to action our nation to unite while being backed by families of victims of that tragic event.
