The current event I picked to analyze was the climax of the subprime mortgage crisis in late 2008. The article, written by Andrew Ross Sorkin for the New York Times on September 14, 2008 highlights the dramatic conclusions to the financial crisis of 2008. To give a basic overview of the events, private firms had begun a practice of purchasing subprime mortgages, bundling them, and then selling them to investors in a process called securitization. During this time, there was a trend for many financial institutions to issue low-documentation loans meaning there was little verification required for homeowners to prove their ability to pay back a loan or place a down payment. When US housing prices peaked in 2006, mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures soared. The crisis reached its climax in September 2008. Prominent financial institutions Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers were both on the verge bankruptcy following the crash of the subprime mortgage backed securities market. Described as “one of the most dramatic days in Wall Street’s history”, Merrill Lynch was sold to Bank of America followed closely by Lehman Brothers filing for bankruptcy. Simultaneously, insurance giant AIG was seeking over $40 billion dollars from the Federal Reserve and The Fed was beginning to build emergency funds for the Wall Street banks.
I believe the event embodies several important aspects of public memory. First, it was an unprecedented moment on Wall Street where “once-proud financial institutions have been brought to their knees”. Industry experts and civilians alike were shocked at the speed and intensity the financial crisis gripped Wall Street. The after effects of the financial crisis gripped Americans in more personal ways. The stock market fell, unemployment rose, and the bubble of relatively good economic times people had experience prior to the crisis was over.
The financial crisis makes me wonder what David Rieff would have to say. In his article, “After 9/11: The Limits of Remembrance”, Rieff argues that “the stark reality is that in the very long run nothing will be remembered”. He makes a compelling argument, using Pearl Harbor as evidence to support his assertion. He poses to readers, “But how many Americans actually remember the 1,177 American sailors killed on the U.S.S. Arizona that day…?” I am compelled to agree with Rieff. Eventually, the majority of Americans won’t remember names like Merrill Lynch or Ben Bernanke. However, I think the public’s memory of their own emotional response to the events and what followed will ensure that collectively, the financial crisis of 2008 will not be forgotten soon. True, in the future it many not be remembered for it’s precedent-breaking financial implications. But, it will be recalled by one individual as the time they lost their home to foreclosure due to the stagnant housing market. Or perhaps it will be remembered by someone else as when they lost their job due to rising unemployment rates. Each person’s individual memory of it, overall is combined to produce a collective, public memory of the event.
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