As the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks approaches, Columbus State University's Dr. Ryan Lynch will host a public lecture, titled "The Legacy of 9/11 and the Future of the War on Terror." The lecture will be offered in both in-person and virtual formats.

"The 20th anniversary of 9/11 has special meaning for those of us who lived through it, and for those of us in the Columbus community specifically. Our community has sent so many soldiers to participate and sacrifice in the 'War on Terror' over the last two decades, including many current active duty service members, veterans, and their families as part of our Columbus State family," Lynch said. "But 20 years have passed, which means in the 9/11 history class I'm teaching this semester, I have many students who weren't alive when the attacks happened, or weren't old enough to remember the experience itself. For them, 9/11 is a historical moment. The 'War on Terror' is the continuing legacy of something they do not necessarily feel any attachment to. The class I'm teaching and the events I have organized to commemorate the anniversary are really working to engage both audiences, and to think about how the past can be weaponized in the creation of new terrorist ideologies in the future."

When: Thursday, Sept. 9 at 6 p.m.

Where: University Hall Auditorium on the CSU Main Campus

Additionally, on Oct. 4, Fort Benning's Major General Patrick Donahoe will speak on "The Post-9/11 Army." That talk, moderated by Dr. Lynch, will take place in University Hall Auditorium at 6:30 p.m. More details about that talk will be released closer to date.

Also on the CSU Main Campus is The Blanchard Flag. The 24' x 39' flag was crafted from individual squares decorated by students at Blanchard Elementary School in Columbus in response to the 9/11 attacks. Sewn together by Michele Boyd, the parent of two Blanchard students, the flag has stars signed by local firefighters and other officials, including former mayor of New York Rudy Giuliani and President George W. Bush. It traveled to New York City to a local elementary school near Ground Zero and hung on the Pentagon during the National Flag Day ceremony on June 14, 2002. It was dedicated to Columbus State University for display on Feb. 26, 2003. The flag hangs in the Lumpkin Center at CSU.