| Summary/Abstract |
In trying to understand the post-9/11 historical moment, historians such as Beverly Gage and Melani McAlister have argued that despite the popular notion that “everything changed” on September 11, 2001, historical continuities shaped the way Americans understood, debated, and responded to this event.1 Historical actors integrate their interpretations of terrorism intro pre-existing ideas, identities, and political goals, fashioning narratives that transform terrorism into a resource for advancing other priorities. Gage describes this dynamic as the “external story” of terrorism, or “the response of the state and society to such challenges, whether in cultural, political, or social terms.”
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