It has already been 25 years since the horrific September 11 attacks, known as “Nine-Eleven” to Americans. To mark this 25th anniversary, a display of 2,977 drones illuminated the New York harbor—exactly 2,977, representing the precise number of victims of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center towers, whose tall vertical silhouettes were traced in the Manhattan sky. The illumination was visible from up to 100 km away.
This “2,977 Lights Over New York Harbor” was a dual artistic and technical achievement, combining the expertise of creative director Addison Mehr, drone show specialists Sky Elements, artistic consultants Design Studio Drift, Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, New York architect Dean Maltz, and installation designer Yan Paul Dubbelman.
There is also a firm political will at work, with a resolute intention not to let the memory of this tragedy fade. In the past, poems were recited and flowers were laid. Twenty-five years is the span of a new generation that operates with different codes, and whose attention and conscience are now captured through this grand spectacle.
In our country, pyromania as a modus operandi has successively burned down the Andafiavaratra Palace—in another little-known “Nine-Eleven” on September 11, 1976—as well as the Rova of Antananarivo and the National Radio. No political will has emerged to preserve these memories, let alone to ensure we do not repeat such suicidal absurdity. Worse, each year of oblivion fosters a collective amnesia, filled by a revisionist rewriting that seeks to wipe the slate clean of the past.
Captured & Published at: 2026-09-11 05:38:48 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/09/nine-eleven.html