U.S. observes 25th anniversary of 9/11 with somber ceremonies

A quarter-century after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, families returned to the World Trade Center site on Friday to read aloud the names of the dead, marking a milestone anniversary of a tragedy that reshaped America.

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Mourners and survivors gathered around the twin waterfall pools that mark the footprints of the two towers in Lower Manhattan for the somber ceremony. Joining for the day of remembrance were Vice President JD Vance, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and former mayors Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg. All of the living former U.S. presidents were also in attendance: Joe Biden, Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

As has been the tradition, family members read out the names of the 2,983 people killed on 9/11, as well as the Feb. 26, 1993, World Trade Center bombing. Beginning at 8:46 a.m., six moments of silence were observed at the times when each of the towers was struck, when each fell, when the Pentagon was attacked and when United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in Pennsylvania.

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The 17-minute period between when the north and south towers were hit by hijacked planes defined an era and a nation, and 25 years later, an estimated 100 million Americans — nearly 30 per cent of the population — are too young to remember that day. During the reading of names, young family members mentioned aunts and uncles they never got to meet, and parents referenced grandchildren who never got to know their grandparents. The square manmade waterfalls at the memorial plunge 30 feet, a design which their architect has described as “absence made visible.”

There were moments when there was a notable shift in tone during what is typically a hallowed ritual, as some accused successive U.S. administrations of not holding Saudi Arabia to account for its role in the attacks.

After reading names, Terry Strada addressed her husband Tom Strada, who was killed in the 9/11 attacks: “How can it be 25 years and still we have no justice for the role that Saudi Arabia played in your murder?” she said. “For 25 years, administration after administration, including leaders in front of us here today, chose to protect the Saudis instead of standing with the 9/11 families.”

President Donald Trump attended a ceremony Friday morning at the Pentagon, honoring the 184 people who died there on 9/11 when a hijacked plane crashed into the building in Arlington, Virginia. At the Department of Defense headquarters, Trump defended the war in Iran, tying the current conflict to the U.S.’s decades-long fight against terrorism.

“Today we renew the sacred oath, we will never ever forget,” he said. “That’s why we fight today.”

For the first time, this year’s Lower Manhattan ceremony included an acknowledgement of how the toll of the attacks is still growing. After the reading of the names, a seventh moment of silence was observed, honouring those who died years later from illnesses and injuries linked to the aftermath of the attacks. It is a recognition that even as the morning the twin towers collapsed passes from living memory for more Americans, its consequences are still unfolding.

Nowhere is that more deeply felt than in the New York City Fire Department, which lost 343 members when the towers fell. In the 25 years since, 453 members have died from cancers, lung diseases and other illnesses linked to the toxic dust and debris that blanketed Lower Manhattan.

Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore, 32 years old on 9/11, was an EMS Academy instructor in Queens who got the call and went to work. She now leads a department where only about 700 of its 17,000 members were there that day.

“What we have found so far is the fire department continues to live that day,” Bonsignore said in an interview.

Hundreds of people gathered on Friday at the Firemen’s Memorial on the Upper West Side, many standing on the unpaved roadbed, as the name of every member of the Fire Department killed in the Sept. 11 attacks was read aloud, each followed by the toll of a bell.

Families of the fallen stood alongside firefighters who had traveled from as far away as France. The United States Marine Band performed The Star-Spangled Banner, and the crowd fell silent to mark the moment the south tower collapsed.

Firefighters who were children when the towers fell now work alongside the dwindling number who responded that morning. New recruits inherit the stories of people they never knew and a skyline they never saw. And the number lost to the attacks’ long aftereffects continues to rise.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Trade Center Health Program now cares for more than 145,000 survivors and first responders, with enrollment swelling by roughly 10,000 people in each of the past two years. More than 57,000 members have had a certified cancer diagnosis.

“We expect to continue seeing cancer and other serious conditions that have longer latency periods,” CDC Director Erica Schwartz said at a Sept. 3 event commemorating the work of the World Trade Center Health Program. “That is one reason this 25th anniversary carries such meaning.”

Also in attendance at the 25th anniversary in New York were former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Speaker of the New York City Council Julie Menin credits her experience organizing to rebuild Lower Manhattan as the reason she is in public service.

At the time, she was a lawyer and owner of Vine, a restaurant and catering company, living not far from the site of the attacks with her family and parents. They remained downtown, with Menin founding a nonprofit dedicated to helping small businesses and becoming a founding trustee of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.

Menin, who attended the memorial, helped secure $1 million in funding this year for the institution to expand education and outreach for New York City students. She wants them to learn about the tragic events as well as “the acts of heroism of the first responders, and the unity that really brought the city together, and simple acts of kindness that happened in those days and weeks after 9/11.”

First responders continue to adopt lessons learned from the attacks. The FDNY and EMS have made changes to their communications systems and technologies used to locate members in emergencies. And they continue to work to keep memories of that day alive.

“You own it, and that’s how we have been able to keep this alive,” said Bonsignore. “And I feel confident that they will own that day, like I own it, having been there firsthand.”

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