The long tail of the 9/11 attacks for one Afghan family

0:00This message comes from NPR sponsor Charles Schwab. Financial decisions can be tricky. Your biases can lead you astray. Financial Decoder, an original podcast from Charles Schwab, can help. Download the latest episode and subscribe at schwab.com slash financial decoder. Today on State of the World, the long tale of the 9-11 attacks for one Afghan family.

0:28You're listening to State of the World from NPR, a human perspective on global events. It's Friday, September 11th. I'm Greg Dixon. It is the 25th anniversary of the September 11th, 2001 attacks on the United States. NPR has lots of coverage on how this day is being observed and the marks it left on countless lives in the U.S. You can find that on our website and across all our programs. Since this podcast has a global focus, today's episode will look back at how a family in Afghanistan experienced those events and what it has meant for them in the 25 years since. After the attacks, of course, the U.S.

1:07launched a war in Afghanistan against Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Many Afghans helped the U.S. fight that war. A lot of them got visas to resettle in America. But now immigration policies are prompting new fears. NPR's Arzu Rezvani tells us the story of one woman's journey and the life-changing decision she faced. She's asked NPR to only use her first initial for fear of retribution for family still in Afghanistan.

1:37A few months ago, 33-year-old S. walked across the stage in a cap and gown. She accepted a law degree with one hand and held her five-year-old's hand in the other as he followed her across the stage in a little gray suit. It was a rare moment of joy for a heartbroken mother. Essa's story begins in Kabul, just a few weeks after the September 11th attacks, when President George W. Bush addressed the nation. On my orders, the United States military has begun strikes against al-Qaeda terrorist training camps and military installations of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. Soon after the war started, the Taliban government collapsed.

2:19American forces started sweeping cities and patrolling neighborhoods. S says as a child, she'd often chase Humvees and tanks rolling down her street. I remember two times the driver stopped. He came out of the car, asked my name, he shaked my hands, And then he, like, encouraged me a lot to go to school, earn your degrees. And I hope to see you one day in the U.S. S thrived in those years after 9-11. With the Taliban gone, she and other Afghan girls were finally allowed to go to school. She mastered English. She got married, had children. But there were also dark times. S's husband became abusive and walked out on the family when S was four months pregnant.

3:00A big break came in 2018. NPR reviewed documents showing S. landed a job as a linguist for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, rooting out drug traffickers in Afghanistan. So our job was identify those people, find them, arrest them. And it was not only drugs, it was human trafficking, people planning explosions, bombing, and killing U.S. military. That drug trade served as a lifeline for the Taliban. And in 2021, Taliban fighters returned to Kabul. It didn't take long before a group of them went looking for S. It was more than 14 Talibs staying with guns outside of my parents' house. S snuck out of the home with her newborn, picked up her kids at a relative's house, and headed to the airport where the Biden administration's chaotic evacuations of U.S.

3:55personnel were underway. The scene at the airport was pure mayhem. Thousands of Afghans begged U.S. soldiers to let them enter the airport. The Taliban moved through the crowds, yelling at people and shooting. S had orders to help as an interpreter. She took her kids, hoping they could then catch a plane out. When they got to the airport, a U.S. soldier guarding the entrance told her only U.S. employees could go in. I asked my mom to stay with them. I'll go talk to them. Stay right here. I'll ask the U.S. soldier, I'll introduce myself, and I'll ask them. I'm a single mom, I need them, right? I'll go talk to them, and I'll come back.

4:41S's daughter clutched her mother's leg. Her son clung to the other, refusing to let go. S then made a fateful decision she says haunts her to this day. She peeled her kids off, and with her baby still strapped to her chest, went to convince the soldier to let them all enter. The only thing that doesn't go away from my eyes is the moment that I've untangled her hands and his hands and I scream on them, I'll come. I promise I'll come. Let me go. I'll promise I'll come. I wish I wouldn't have done that. As she was trying to make her case, crowds around her grew rowdy. She says she got shoved into the airport, and that was it.

5:26S's kids watched her and their baby brother disappear beyond the airport walls. Soon after, she says U.S. soldiers inside the airport, amid growing chaos, hustled them onto a plane. It's been five years, and S's kids are still in Afghanistan. From her modest apartment in Northern California, she calls them every morning, every night.

5:55Her daughter doesn't go to school anymore. The Taliban has again banned girls' education after age 12. Her son is recovering from surgery. He was born with a cleft foot. The baby boy, as carried on her chest into the airport and onto America, is now a kindergartner who knows his siblings only through these calls.

6:17For a time, S says she considered suicide, but she couldn't bring herself to do it, not with her youngest still with her. Every so often during our interview, the five-year-old sets his toys aside and comes over. He wraps his arms around his mother. Thank you. I'm okay. I'm okay. Over the years, with the help of a lawyer, S has begged government officials for help. But immigration processes dragged under President Biden. Then immigration policies tightened under President Trump. There was a window of opportunity a year ago when a lawsuit against the Trump administration cleared a path for family reunifications.

6:57After interviews and vetting, S's kids got clearance to join her in the U.S. Then it all fell apart. Two National Guard troops have been shot in Washington near the White House. An Afghan man who was also evacuated in 2021 was identified as the suspect. Hours later, Trump announced a permanent pause on immigration from, quote, third world countries. NPR asked the State Department about S's kids. A spokesperson said they couldn't comment on specific cases and added, quote, there's no absolute right to bring alien friends or relatives to the United States. S has no idea when she'll hold her two kids again.

7:38She blames the U.S. government for that. The September 11th terrorist attacks that in many ways led to S's freedom have come at a cost. For her, for her children, and for the faith she once had in the U.S. government. I was asked to trust them. I'll never trust them again. Arazu Razvani, NPR News, Rockland, California. You can find much more coverage of the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks on air, online at NPR.org and on the NPR app.

8:17That's the State of the World from NPR. Thanks for listening. This message comes from NPR sponsor Charles Schwab. Financial decisions can be tricky. Your biases can lead you astray. Financial Decoder, an original podcast from Charles Schwab, can help. Download the latest episode and subscribe at schwab.com slash financial decoder. This message comes from Thumbtack. Some tasks can feel easy, but home projects can bring second guesses. Is that noise normal? Is that water damage? Who should be called? That's where Thumbtack comes in. Just upload a photo or voice note, and it uses AI-powered search to match with the right top-rated local pro.

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