President Trump and Vice President Vance will attend ceremonies Friday marking the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, which killed 2,977 people when al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners and flew them into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon.
One plane crashed in a field outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew fought back against the hijackers. Its intended target has been identified as the U.S. Capitol.
Of the 2,977 killed, 2,753 died in New York, including 343 firefighters. An additional 184 died at the Pentagon and 40 died in Pennsylvania. Thousands more have since died of illnesses contracted during the recovery and rescue effort at Ground Zero.
In a proclamation issued Sept. 9, Trump wrote that the 2,977 lives taken that day must never be forgotten and that the vow made at Ground Zero in the aftermath of the attacks must be renewed in the hearts of Americans, honored in every community and taught in every classroom.
The ceremonies
Observances will be held at the three attack sites. The observance at Ground Zero in New York is the largest, featuring the reading of names of those killed and the illumination of the Tribute in Light. The Pentagon observance in Arlington, Virginia, honors the 184 people killed when American Airlines Flight 77 struck the building’s western side. The Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, marks the crash of the flight from Newark to San Francisco.
Both New York and Washington observances include moments of silence timed to the impacts and the collapse of the towers. A moment of silence is also observed at 10 a.m., the approximate time of the Shanksville crash.
What the day means
At 25 years, the Sept. 11 anniversary carries a particular weight. The quarter-century mark is a historical threshold at which living memory and historical record begin to shift relative to one another. The youngest adults who remember the attacks as children are now in their late 20s and early 30s. Children born after the attacks are now adults entering the workforce and voting for the first time.
The 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York is the principal institution of record for that day and its aftermath. The reflecting pools sit where the Twin Towers stood, with the names of the 2,977 victims carved into the surrounding parapets.
For the families who lost someone that day, and for the first responders whose health continues to be affected by the Ground Zero recovery, every anniversary carries a weight no ceremony can fully contain. The 25th represents a moment to honor both the dead and those still living with the consequences of that morning.
If you were affected by the Sept. 11 attacks or have a connection to the day, the 9/11 Memorial at memorial.org maintains resources for survivors, family members and the public.
