Behind the Lens: A Quiet Embrace at the 9/11 Memorial

Two visitors dressed in winter jackets embrace beside a name on the Memorial.
Visitors embrace on the 9/11 Memorial plaza. Photo by Jin Lee.

In this series, 9/11 Memorial & Museum staff photographer Jin Lee shares his view of select photographs taken on the site.

I’m drawn to scenes like this, of people reflecting in quiet moments. I’ve been photographing the site throughout its many stages over the years, since before the Memorial was fully open to the public.

Now people can walk up to the pools and experience them freely like this, how the Memorial is intended to be experienced.

I noticed these two people, maybe a mother and daughter, this month while I was walking into the museum. They stood there embracing each other for a long time.

Moments like this move me on a personal level. Photographing them is a small way to capture what this place represents.

By 9/11 Memorial Staff

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Remembering Hilda Taylor

A white rose has been placed at Hilda Taylor’s name on a bronze parapet at Memorial plaza. An inset image is an old photograph of Taylor.

Hilda Taylor came to the United States from Sierra Leone to further her education, settling with her family in Maryland. Hilda taught sixth grade at Leckie Elementary School in Washington DC.

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Alex Zablocki, a Museum member and 9/11 Memorial Run/Walk participant, smiles at the finish line in 2016. Other participants cross the finish line behind him. Dozens of American flags stand above the finish line sign.

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