Ashes Unify: The Aftermath of Notre Dame
On the evening of April 15th, horrified onlookers huddled at the banks of the River Seine while one of Paris’s most iconic monuments was engulfed in flames. The Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, more than 850 years old, has long stood in Gothic glory as a symbol of the French nation. Having both endured desecration during the French Revolution and housed celebration following Paris’s 1944 liberation, Notre-Dame symbolizes everything from wealth and religiosity to freedom and nationalism. Despite periods of disrepair, the cathedral has endured, inspiring French citizens and visitors alike in the wake of multiple renovation projects.
Notre-Dame was amid yet another restoration initiative when its roof caught fire. While the cause of the ensuing blaze remains unknown, the increased likelihood of short-circuits and wayward sparks magnify fire risk during renovations. With a roof of aged, dry timber and a latticed attic known as “the forest,” any spark might blossom into flames and any such flames might spread rapidly across the cathedral. Although Notre-Dame had invested in a sophisticated fire warning system, it was not enough. The fire department was called a full 30 minutes after the system initially notified fire security employees, a reaction far too slow to prevent the destruction that followed.
In shared mourning, tragic events remind us of our commonality, so that out of the devastating fires of destruction a better future might be forged together.
The fire blazed for nearly five hours, requiring the efforts of hundreds of emergency responders. Fortunately, no one was killed. Instead, the blaze took its emotional toll on the crowds of people who cried, gaped, and gasped in horror as the world-renowned cathedral crumbled into ashes. A feeling of helplessness pervaded the crowd. The New York Times reported that one onlooker, the mayor of Paris’s Fourth Arrondissement, described the scene as “an end-of-the-world atmosphere.” The leader of the first firefighting team to arrive contrasted the typical peaceful environment around the cathedral with the apocalyptic one on the night of the fire: “it was more like hell.” When the blaze brought down Notre-Dame’s iconic 300-foot spire, the onlooker Pierre-Eric Trimovillas solemnly proclaimed from the crowd, “Paris is beheaded.”
In the fire’s aftermath, the world mourned with Paris. Leaders of nations from every continent sent their condolences, while business leaders in the private sector philanthropically put forward nearly a billion dollars in donations toward the cathedral’s reconstruction. As a show of solidarity and unity, French President Emmanuel Macron cancelled a planned speech addressing the “Yellow Vest” protests which had plagued his administration. When tragedy struck at home, in short, petty differences could be put aside.
The fire’s aftermath followed the classic pattern of mourning: the horrific event itself, then the ensuing grace period in which compassion and generosity reign, and lastly the return to normalcy and all its bitter infighting as soon as vibrant memories of the tragedy fade and former disagreements resurface. We often see this when a shooting takes place in America, when climate change strikes in the form of a devastating natural disaster, when a child dies from a preventable illness. There is an outpouring of sympathy, media attention, and financial donations, only to return to the same squabbling, with few real changes in aggregate to prevent another such event.
When tragedy struck at home, petty differences could be put aside.
Although responses to the Notre-Dame fire underwent that same media cycle and soon returned to infighting, the tragedy itself appears more similar to the events of 9/11 than to the other crises listed above. No one questions that the destructive fire did not (at present knowledge) involve premeditated and malicious intent by foreign terrorists, result in massive military campaigns overseas, or tragically and unexpectedly end the lives of thousands of citizens. Rather, both events destroyed precious national symbols, all but paralyzed the victim cities and nations for a time, and prompted worldwide reactions of horror and sympathy.
This past fall, the United States acknowledged the 18th anniversary of that September day which changed the course of history. Every year, the country mourns anew and remembers in unity. The partisan games are suspended, the infighting is called to a ceasefire, and all the nation voices compassion in solidarity. Though 9/11’s anniversary presents to some an opportunity to debate both local and international sociopolitical consequences, such commentaries are often criticized as politicizing a national catastrophe. For one day, the United States mourns. People simply want a day to come together, not one more chance among countless others to argue with other Americans in seeming futility. While incidents like shootings largely fail to unify opposing sides, those like 9/11 and the Notre-Dame fire involving national symbols allow people to see the humanity in their political enemies. In shared mourning, tragic events remind us of our commonality, so that out of the devastating fires of destruction a better future might be forged together. For a time, however short it may be, people can look to each other with sympathy and compassion. Arising from the ashes of tragedy, is unity.