In the decade before 9/11, most Americans had never heard of Osama bin Laden. Even when he declared war on the United States in a television interview, he remained largely unknown.
Many clues that were later uncovered about the his activities, which have been stored in the FBI’s evidence lockers, are now going on public view for the first time today at the Newseum in Washington. The journalism museum is expanding its current FBI exhibit with a new section, “War on Terror: The FBI’s New Focus.”
Among 60 artifacts on view are engines and landing gear from passenger planes that crashed into the World Trade Center and the hiking boots that would-be bomber Richard Reid rigged in December 2001 to explode aboard an airliner. Ten years after the attacks, the Newseum said it was time to examine the impact.
“They call it evidence; we call it artifacts,” said Susan Bennett, a Newseum vice president who oversees exhibits. “Just as we have the Berlin Wall as a reminder of the Cold War and the collapse of communism, we think it’s important to use these artifacts to tell the story of 9/11 and how it changed our lives.”
The exhibit will run through the end of 2012. The Newseum expects to host thousands of visitors during the weekend of the 10th anniversary of the attacks.
