Thomas Hoepker Young people relax during their lunch break along the East River while a huge plume of smoke rises from Lower Manhattan after the attack on the World Trade Center. Brooklyn, New York, USA. Septembe
(...) r 11, 2001.
“The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, were without a doubt the most significant historical event in recent decades. And now, we are in the midst of another and far more severe global crisis that is affecting our lives and will have consequences for years to come. I have been thinking a lot about this image I took that fatal morning on the shores of the East River, looking at the smoke rising from the fallen Twin Towers. I passed by in my car and saw a group of people sitting seemingly relaxed in the sun. I clicked the shutter a few times and drove on. It became a controversial image, taken in a split second, documenting a tiny slice of reality without interfering with people’s behavior or body language. But somehow in the eyes of observers, critics, and scholars it also became a symbol of hope, suggesting that life does and will go on; that we are strong and will overcome. I’m confident that this will be the case also during the current global coronavirus pandemic.”
– Thomas Hoepker © Thomas Hoepker | Magnum Photos
