From Deseret News archives:

Utahns look back on 9/11

9/11 pain, patriotism endure

Published: Thursday, Sept. 11, 2003 2:04 p.m. MDT
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Manaza Akhtar, 16 and a junior at Horizonte, said she and her family endured insults after the attacks. Someone drove by her grandmother's house and yelled that the Indian-Pakistani family should go back where they came from.

"People suspect you. They always wonder. They look at you different now. Different after 9/11," the soft-spoken Akhtar said. "We were in fear at first. It didn't make us more patriotic. Why would people turn on Americans?"

Still, she said she was able to travel to Pakistan last year without incident. And the future international affairs and business major is more determined than ever to succeed, "to show them we're not just terrorists."

Teenagers have a different perspective on the attacks, she said, because they're growing up with the images of the day's death and destruction played over and over. For example, she questions why the war on terrorism isn't targeting domestic hate groups.

All this has, however, given her a new appreciation and pride for her family's heritage. "I was born and raised American," she said. "I thought I was American until they told me I wasn't."


E-MAIL: lisa@desnews.com

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Amanda Lucidon, Deseret Morning News

A volunteer places a flag Wednesday in the "healing field" outside Sandy City Hall. There's one for each victim of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

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