9/11 Museum Is a 'Gut Punch'

More than a decade after 9/11, the museum commemorating the 2,983 people who died in 2001 and in the 1993 attack will open ceremonially on Thursday with President Obama in attendance. The museum, which will open to the public next Wednesday, has received criticism for a $24 entrance fee and for selling souvenir T-shirts. However, “It delivers a gut-punch experience,” says The New York Times. Most of the museum is below ground, while the entrance is a glass box designed by Norwegian architectural firm Snohetta, and is described as looking like a tipping building. The museum has two main sections, a commemorative exhibition for those killed in the attacks, which features photographs and spoken reminiscences; and an exhibition focusing on the day itself, created by a team of designers led by the museum’s director, Alice Greenwald. It features recordings of last phone calls, surveillance videos of hijackers, and objects from the day itself, like a damaged ambulance.