The flags served as a memorial put in place by two student groups: the conservative activist group Young Americans for Freedom and the social fraternity, Tau Kappa Epsilon, which is part of 9-11: Never Forget Project.
The organizations also had a candlelight vigil at 8 p.m. in memory of 9-11.
Andrew Ireland, a member of both organizations, said eight people helped set up the flags Thursday morning and the same program was going on at approximately 300 campuses nationwide.
“Of course, today’s a real day of reflection, but it’s something you carry with you every day,” Ireland said.
Joel Norman, a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon, said he was in the second grade during the attacks and that he first knew something was wrong when his mom, without warning, picked him up from school.
“I didn’t actually know about it until after school,” Norman said.
Norman said it had been up to his teachers whether or not they told their students what was happening and his elected not to.
Ireland said he was only in kindergarten but that, since his brother had just been born the day before, he remembers all of it as very chaotic.
Ireland emphasized that, for many college students, the attacks are one of their first memories. He said the major function of 9-11: Never Forget Project is education.
“To think that they have any recollection of 9-11 or the events that happened that day is unlikely,” he said.
While Ireland said he does not, Norman said he has memories of a pre-9-11 world.
He said his father traveled a lot and he remembered meeting him at the airport gates when he returned from trips.
Both Ireland and Norman brought up security as a major change in the way the world works after the attacks.
“It’s not just here, it’s other places worldwide,” Norman said.
Ireland said the memorial had garnered a generally positive response and estimated they had spoken with nearly 1,000 people.
“That’s what we’re here for,” he said. “It’s about that reach. It’s about educating and providing that reflection point.”
Ireland said there had been two people who had issues with the memorial, and one person in particular asked why they wouldn’t also be remembering the lives lost in Iraq.
Norman and Ireland said they don’t think there will be a time when taking time to remember the 9-11 attacks won’t be necessary.
Norman said he has been to New York recently and he is reminded every time he’s there.
Ireland said 9-11 still very much affects daily life.
“It isn’t any easier putting 2,900 flags in the ground and recognizing that every one of those flags represents a person,” Ireland said.
Ireland said that, though Indiana is distanced physically from the attacks, he thinks 9-11 is likely one of the most shared experiences that American people have.
“I don’t believe we know where we were on Sept. 15,” he said. “We don’t know what we were doing on Sept. 20, but we know where we were on Sept. 11, 2001.”
