Students reacted across campus late Sunday night after President Barack Obama formally announced U.S. forces had killed infamous al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The news, which came nearly 10 years after the bin Laden-orchestrated 9/11 attacks, prompted celebrations that included a 100-person rally at the Rock and a parade through the University library.
The announcement was particularly poignant for Weinberg sophomore Eric Stefenson, who lost a close family friend and nearly lost his father to the 9/11 attacks.
Stefenson’s father was slated to meet a friend at the World Trade Center the morning of the attacks but was running late, Stefenson said. Timing saved Stefenson’s father, who just missed the attacks but was one of the many people photographed in the streets covered in dust and debris. Stefenson was pulled out of school early that day as the family anxiously awaited word from his father, who did not have a cellphone with which to contact them.
Sunday night, Stefenson said he teared up as the President described the 9/11 events. Stefenson and several fraternity members were some of the first people to gather at the rock, and they sprinted down Sheridan Road carrying an American flag.
“I was tearing up when he (Obama) was talking about the 9/11 attacks, I remember it very vividly,” Stefenson said. “Not being sure if my dad was still alive, there was a lot of uncertainty and I was crying at the time in fifth grade. That all came rushing back. The whole night was super emotional.”
In Obama’s statement from the White House on Sunday night, he said bin Laden’s death marked an important moment in the war on terror, but noted that it was not the end of the effort. The mood was nothing short of jubilant across the country, with crowds gathering outside the White House, The New York Times reported Sunday night. Obama ended the announcement by saying, “justice has been done.”
At NU, students commemorated the event at the Rock by waving American flags and singing the national anthem. The celebration evolved into a parade through the library. A group of students with instruments began playing “When The Saints Go Marching In” as they marched, stopping in the entrance to sing the national anthem.
Medill freshman Deontae Moore joined the parade and said bin Laden’s death warranted the celebration.
“It’s pretty exciting times for us Americans,” Moore said. “Especially for those who lost loved ones to 9/11.”
Weinberg junior Taylor Burgart, who comes from a military family, said he was excited by the news but emphasized the importance of remembering all the lives lost in the effort.
“Of course I understand the impulse to celebrate, and it’s something I’m certainly not immune to,” Burgart said. “But it came on the shoulder of a lot of different people and a lot of sacrifices. You have to remember that.”
Burgart added that he was too “cued up” to get much sleep.
“People are going to celebrate the way they are going to celebrate,” Burgart said. “Personally I look at all this as a general catharsis.”
Andrew Nelson, a SESP freshman said the celebrations were impressive. He also said he was shocked by the President’s announcement, which he watched in his dorm suite. Shortly after, he joined the celebration at the Rock.
“It’s really great to go outside and see people going nuts,” Nelson said. “It feels like history is actually being made.”
Maria LaMagna and Sean Lavery contributed reporting to this story.
