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Coping in the Aftermath of theWorld Trade Center TragedyLear Matthews DSW aa SUNY Empire State College , USAPublished online: 13 Nov 2009.

To cite this article: Lear Matthews DSW (2003) Coping in the Aftermath of the WorldTrade Center Tragedy, Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Services, 1:2, 101-108, DOI:10.1300/J191v01n02_06

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Coping in the Aftermathof the World Trade Center Tragedy:

An Immigrant Perspective

Lear Matthews

ABSTRACT. Regardless of immigrant status, citizenship or allegiance,all have been consumed by the magnitude of human devastation which oc-curred in the United States on September 11, 2001. People who werekilled or traumatized came from myriad countries. Yet many in the immi-grant community appear to be among the newest casualties of terrorism inthe wake of the disaster. This article examines how the World Trade Cen-ter tragedy affected the social and psychological well-being of immigrantsand the implications for human services. [Article copies available for a feefrom The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail ad-dress: <docdelivery@haworthpress.com> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com> © 2002 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]

KEYWORDS. Immigrants, World Trade Center tragedy, human services

Regardless of immigrant status, citizenship or allegiance, all havebeen consumed by the magnitude of human devastation and structuraldamage that occurred in the United States on September 11, 2001, giv-ing rise to feelings of anxiety and insecurity about the future. In the af-termath, uncharacteristic labels and behaviors may be viewed as normalin this abnormal situation. For instance, an often perceived “imper-sonal” New York City, where a substantive segment of the population isforeign born, suddenly gained the reputation of being a very friendly

Lear Matthews, DSW, is affiliated with SUNY Empire State College.

Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Services, Vol. 1(2) 2002http://www.haworthpress.com/store/product.asp?sku=J191

2002 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. 101

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place; attendance at religious institutions reportedly increased; therehas been a contagion of impassioned flag-waving across the countryamidst calls for revenge; near hysteria prevailed as a result of the chaosand unimaginable carnage; and public officials were given high praiseby some of their staunchest critics as they responded to the crisis.

As New Yorkers began to regroup and reconnect, many nervously re-counted where they were “when the first plane hit” or “when the secondtower collapsed.” Others related incredible stories they had heard or thedevastation they had witnessed, at the same time holding back tears orspellbound with blank stares of disbelief. No one has been completelyimmune. Indeed, the National Immigration Law Center (2001) remindsus that the economic and emotional consequences of the attacks havebeen borne equally by all varieties of Americans, immigrants and na-tive-born, Christians, Jews, Muslim and Hindus. In previous disasters,such as Hurricane Hugo in 1989 and the Oklahoma City bombing in1995, it was found that many of the victims exhibited long-term emo-tional difficulties and had to be assisted in coping with the stress createdby changes in their life skills demands and “environmental circum-stances” (Stewart et al., 1992; Garrison et al., 1993). Although the Sep-tember 11th disaster, like others, brought individuals and groups closertogether, Marger (2000) points to the potential tempering of inter-ethnicrelations following terrorist attacks, in which the marginality of somegroups tends to increase due to negative labeling of members of the eth-nic group to which the alleged perpetrators belong. In this article, theauthor will examine the unique experience of immigrants, specificallyhow the horrific World Trade Center tragedy affected their social andpsychological well-being, and briefly discuss the implications for hu-man services.

A common thread has been the emotional toll the event took on peo-ple in New York City and beyond, from this catastrophe in which therehas been much loss and public suffering. Shortly after the disaster, onecan imagine the many worried overseas relatives and friends attemptingto make contact to ensure that their loved ones were safe, a task thatmore than likely became a frantic and frustrating experience, since bothlocal and international communication systems were temporarily dis-rupted. Terrified foreign college students, prompted by host relatives,reportedly began making plans to return to their home country. As thelist of immigrants and foreigners who perished in the attack was re-vealed, the international and multicultural symbolism of the WorldTrade Center was truly realized. People who were killed or traumatized

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came from myriad countries, were of various ethnicities and employedin positions ranging from executive to dishwasher.

A noticeable response was a rallying of resources to help the familiesof victims (primarily through religious organizations) throughout theimmigrant community. However, many in the immigrant communityappear to be among the newest casualties of terrorism, and face a num-ber of obstacles. In the wake of the attack, hundreds of undocumentedimmigrant employees of the World Trade Center, and the families ofmissing undocumented immigrants were described as being in a state of“despair and confusion.” Upon losing their jobs, many immigrants donot have the safety net afforded others, due to restrictions of Supple-mental Security Income and Family Assistance programs. A number ofthem worked off-the-books, doing menial service jobs for low pay, andare not eligible for unemployment or survivor benefits. Another dis-tressing phenomenon is that immigrant Day Laborers, many with inade-quate or no healthcare coverage, have been among scores of frontlinecleanup workers exposed to hazardous materials at the World TradeCenter site. Many face unemployment and underemployment and someWorld Trade Center employers are likely to deny that they employedundocumented workers, thus shrugging off the responsibility of provid-ing compensation to surviving family members and dodging govern-ment employment eligibility sanctions.

Compounding this stressful situation is that families have not beencoming forward to make benefit claims for fear of deportation, althoughthe American Red Cross, which earmarked over one million dollars toassist international victims of the disaster, has been committed to pro-viding services, as long as immigrants can produce at least one personwho can verify their employment. The September 11th Fund also prom-ised to provide for the undocumented. Furthermore, the then mayor ofNew York City reported that he would do whatever he could within hispowers to ensure that relief funds are shared among the victims of thetragedy, regardless of immigration status. Such anticipated support issignificant because as a marginal societal group, some immigrants tendto be hesitant to seek help on their own.

In addition to the daily consolations and discussions with family andfriends about the repercussions of this life-changing occurrence, immi-grants have bonded with their American co-workers throughout the na-tion to mourn and to gain encouragement to move on. Collectively,these interactions provided good sources of immediate comfort and per-haps an opportunity to observe and gain from cross-cultural dimensionsof dealing with stress and bereavement. Nevertheless, in some in-

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stances, not unlike the general population, there have been prolongedfeelings of fear and anxiety, especially among those who may not havea strong supportive network of relatives and friends residing in theUnited States. It is unknown whether large numbers of people will suf-fer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), but the onset of somemeasure of emotional difficulty or “critical incident stress,” especiallyamong those who have been directly impacted by the disaster, is to beexpected.

Most people tend to successfully handle disasters, although pre-ex-isting personality factors and mental health, previous experiences andavailability of support systems would affect the nature of one’s re-sponse. For some immigrants, especially refugees and persons request-ing asylum, this event could trigger memories of past situations oftrauma, which occurred in their country of origin or in transit to theUnited States. Unfortunately, mental hygiene facilities have reported onthe inevitable relapse into regressed behaviors and self-medicatingmeasures, such as increased alcohol consumption, as a way of coping. Itis important to note that dreams and flashbacks are normal under thesecircumstances, can be accepted as part of the healing and adaptive pro-cess, and are likely to decrease over time.

Concomitantly, immigrants may be troubled by the prospect of dis-ruption of life plans in their adopted home, especially after leaving theircountry of origin for “a better life” in the United States. In the weeks im-mediately following the disaster, apart from stories of survival and ex-pressed sadness of loss, there have been serious conversations amongimmigrants about returning to their homeland, “Where it may now besafer.” No doubt, this response could be exacerbated by the media mes-sages about the threat of biological warfare and other forms of retalia-tory attacks. But because most immigrants may not have planned toreturn on a permanent basis or do have their own repatriation timetable(e.g., after retirement), such thinking can lead to feelings of marginality,ambivalence and unwanted compromise (all quite common) in times ofsocial and personal crises.

It is clear that the nation was shocked, if not temporarily in a state ofparalysis by this atrocity, but individuals and groups reacted differently.Virtually the entire international community has empathized with theUnited States and some nations vouched to join the war on terrorism.Yet there have been as many divergent views on the precipitating fac-tors for the level of terrorism, as the views on possible solutions. Somepeople have riskily explained the attacks from a foreign policy perspec-tive; others have explored the link with religious fundamentalism; some

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questioned the sanity of the perpetrators in their “altruistic” suicide mis-sion and others, though less publicized, joined the march for peace.

The after effects of the tragedy may cause some immigrants to reas-sess their position and role in their adopted home. For example, immi-grants from all levels of the social stratum, who share the pain ofAmericans, have been further victimized by attitudes of intolerance,stereotyping, ethnic profiling and stricter immigration policies. The is-suance of students’ and H1B (employment eligibility) visas has beenparticularly jeopardized. Meanwhile, the selective detention of thou-sands, including foreign students has evoked some controversy, as didthe federal government’s promise of legal immigrant status and citizen-ship to foreign informants. Executive orders have been signed to “im-pose guilt by association on immigrants; authorize the indefinite lockup of aliens on mere suspicion . . . allow the use of secret evidence in im-migration proceedings that aliens cannot confront or rebut” (Bello,2002). Specifically, the USA PATRIOT ACT (Uniting and StrengtheningAmerica by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Ob-struct Terrorism), instituted in October 2001 with virtually no publicawareness or debate, authorizes “secret searches” and ensures the depor-tation of immigrants who support organizations that, known or unknownto them, fund terrorism. These governmental reforms are understand-able within a context that necessitates stringent measures for nationalsecurity. Under similar circumstances, the federal government in 1800proclaimed that, “maintaining the rights of aliens was essential topreserving liberty for American citizens” (Baseler, 1998). In thesame light, citizens as well as resident immigrants and visiting for-eigners to the United States must be as vigilant about their civil liber-ties as they should be with regards to the threat of terrorism at homeand abroad.

People respond differently to this kind of extreme crisis, dependingon their social and political circumstances. It is not surprising then, thatafter September 11th; some immigrants openly displayed the Americanflag, perhaps because of a genuine sense of loyalty or from pressure todo so, by others in the host society. However, in other cases, exhibitingunbridled patriotism was a defense against violence because of their“middle eastern” or “south Asian” looks. Even Latinos and CaribbeanEast Indians have been mistaken for “Arabs” and treated with disdainand suspicion. In this regard, writing in the New York Times, Sterngold(2001) reported that some legal and undocumented immigrants “feelvulnerable because the message from Washington is that foreignersnow pose the greatest threat to the country, causing some to sink deeper

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into their already shadowy world.” This atmosphere could cause someof those who have had political problems in their home country to bedriven underground. Another concern is that, despite the call for ethnictolerance, in the heightened state of patriotism, segments of the societymay revert to xenophobic reactions. Similarly, serious fallout from theevent is that the progress made on immigration policy may be lost by thedawning of draconian laws enacted in the interest of securing the bor-ders of the United States.

This is reminiscent of the situation following the Wall Street bomb-ing in 1920, when hundreds of “aliens” who were among the suspectedperpetrators, were arrested and deported (Todd and Curti, 1986). Thoseconditions undoubtedly contributed to the enactment of the 1924 QuotaSystem, restricting immigration for over thirty years.

The interdependence between immigrants and their relatives in thehome country that helps to sustain family and community relations hasalso been adversely affected. Potentially unable to send remittances.

Psychologists identify two ways in which people tend to deal withstressful situations. In the first, we may have some control over the situ-ation and try to resolve it by engaging in some task, either individuallyor collectively, with a determination to make meaningful changes tocompensate for loss. In the World Trade Center and Pentagon suicideattacks, however, we have very little control and may become fatalistic,resolve to make good out of evil or just try to “protect ourselves frompsychological damage and disorganization” (Carson, Butcher andMineka, 2001). Not being able to change the situation, mutual comfort-ing among significant others (family, friends and empathetic public fig-ures) and psychological counseling, can help persons cope with the hurtof this overwhelming stressful occurrence. Perhaps the proven resil-ience among immigrants (the ability to adapt successfully to even verydifficult circumstances) will make it less likely that many will experi-ence long-term adverse effects.

Any such resilience, however, depends on the effectiveness of com-munity support systems, which have existed in many immigrant com-munities as a conduit to help in the overall migration adjustmentprocess. In particular, relief funding by immigrant entrepreneurs can beinstrumental. Both the economic and mental health needs of immigrantsmust be addressed, if they are to contribute significantly to the emo-tional, spiritual and structural rebuilding process, thus giving more thansymbolic meaning to the harmonious slogan “United We Stand.”

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IMPLICATIONS FOR HUMAN SERVICES

With the range and intensity of impact and reactions to this unprece-dented, incomprehensible tragedy, immigrants, like other victims andtheir families, need guidance in removing the obstacles that emerged af-ter 9/11, and counseling to help them cope emotionally. Although fearsmay subside with the passage of time, they need assistance in makingdecisions about the permanency of settlement and protecting or improv-ing their immigration status. Numerous social workers, counselors,mental health practitioners, and legal aid specialists have volunteeredtheir services, either privately or through various not-for-profit agen-cies. Not only is it important to assist immigrants with emotional diffi-culties, but also with benefit claims, including claims by survivingoverseas and host relatives. In preparation for these tasks, it is crucialthat agencies and human service professionals engage “the inherentstrengths and resources” of the various immigrant groups, which wouldensure a culturally competent system of care (O’Neill, 2001).

Nevertheless, although counseling and related services help, so domutual support, perseverance and prayer. In the spirit of global under-standing, bridging the cultural gap and building the desired interna-tional coalition against terrorism, God should not only bless America assloganized, but all nations. In fact, it was encouraging to have had theorganized inter-faith memorials at churches, mosques, temples and syn-agogues for national and international victims of this calamitous event,some of which were organized by community activists.

Since the September 11th disaster, the role of human service profes-sionals working with immigrants and refugees has moved beyond facil-itating “normal” adjustment. Holistic services to this population mustnow deliberately harness social, psychological, economic, legal andcross-cultural resources. A clear goal should be self-sufficiency, alongwith continued community building, involving community-based orga-nizations. This is necessary within a social environment where there islikely to be increased vulnerability of immigrants because of their un-documented status, potential alienation due to country of origin ornon-assertive help-seeking behaviors.

Consequently, intervention should not only include disaster counsel-ing, community outreach and advocating for the rights of immigrants,but also must be informed by current immigration policies and proce-dures. The forging of a collaborative relationship between the NewYork State Commission on Human Rights and the Immigration andNaturalization Service would be instrumental in this process.

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Human service workers should assume an empowering role as thera-pists and social brokers to help increase immigrants’ coping capacity.Along with educators, they must also participate in a system in whichknowledge of civil, political and legal processes, including the accurateinterpretation of immigration laws is acquired and applied to enhanceeffective practice. Social welfare organizations must be prepared to co-ordinate their efforts in order to avoid duplication at a time when fund-ing for “homeland security” is likely to take precedence over humanservices. Finally, there must be ongoing educational and therapeuticsupport services for the practitioners themselves, thus helping them toacquire effective resources and skills in developing both emergencyand long-term strategies for assisting all segments of the population incoping with a disaster of this magnitude.

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and Modern Life. Boston, Allyn and Bacon.Garrison et al. (1993). Post-traumatic stress disorder in adolescents after a hurricane.

American Journal of Epidemiology, 138, 522-30.Marger, M.N. (2000). Race and Ethnic Relations: American and Global Perspectives.

Stamford, CT. Wadsworth.National Law Center. (2001). In the wake of September 11th. Washington DC (NILC

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