Five of the most important events in American history over the last decade that have had a nationwide impact could include Hurricane Katrina, the election of Barack Obama, the collapse of the Lehman Brothers, 9/11 and, most recently, the execution of Osama Bin Laden.
Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005 to become one of the five deadliest hurricanes in American history. With over 1,800 deaths and $81 billion worth of damage, the Category Five hurricane caused severe destruction before floods wiped out towns in hours. Six years on, there are still thousands of residents without homes.
In 2008, Barack Obama made history by becoming the first African-American to be elected as president. Following a huge campaign, he defeated contender John McCain to be inaugurated as president in January 2009. By October 2009, Obama had been names Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
On September 15, 2008, the Lehman Brothers Holdings announced that it would be filing for bankruptcy. Following it was a mass exodus of its staff, clients, drastic losses in its stock and devaluation of its assets. Until then it was the fourth-largest investment bank in the United States and participated in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales among other things.
On September 11, 2001, four commercial airliners were hijacked and crashed in a coordinated suicide attack ordered by al-Qaeda. The tragedy had nearly 3,000 victims as the planes were directed into the Twin Towers, the Pentagon and in a field near Shanksville. In 2004, Osama bin Laden claimed responsibility for the attack, leading to a worldwide war on terror.
Nearly 10 years on from the devastating September 11th attacks, American troops found and shot FBI’s most wanted man: Osama bin Laden. May 2, 2011 saw the death of the al-Qaeda leader, bringing some justice to the families who lost loved ones in 9/11 and other terrorist attacks internationally.
Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005 to become one of the five deadliest hurricanes in American history. With over 1,800 deaths and $81 billion worth of damage, the Category Five hurricane caused severe destruction before floods wiped out towns in hours. Six years on, there are still thousands of residents without homes.
In 2008, Barack Obama made history by becoming the first African-American to be elected as president. Following a huge campaign, he defeated contender John McCain to be inaugurated as president in January 2009. By October 2009, Obama had been names Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
On September 15, 2008, the Lehman Brothers Holdings announced that it would be filing for bankruptcy. Following it was a mass exodus of its staff, clients, drastic losses in its stock and devaluation of its assets. Until then it was the fourth-largest investment bank in the United States and participated in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales among other things.
On September 11, 2001, four commercial airliners were hijacked and crashed in a coordinated suicide attack ordered by al-Qaeda. The tragedy had nearly 3,000 victims as the planes were directed into the Twin Towers, the Pentagon and in a field near Shanksville. In 2004, Osama bin Laden claimed responsibility for the attack, leading to a worldwide war on terror.
Nearly 10 years on from the devastating September 11th attacks, American troops found and shot FBI’s most wanted man: Osama bin Laden. May 2, 2011 saw the death of the al-Qaeda leader, bringing some justice to the families who lost loved ones in 9/11 and other terrorist attacks internationally.
