The phrase “We Will Never Forget” echoed on the morning of September 11, 2025, as families, survivors, and dignitaries gathered for solemn ceremonies in New York City’s Ground Zero and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. The observance of the 24th anniversary of the attacks that forever changed U.S. and world history was a mingling of public forum and private grieving, establishing perpetual pledge to memory, healing, and unity.
Morning remembrance: Names read, silence observed
The day started with thousands of relatives and survivors arriving to the National September 11 Memorial Plaza in Manhattan. Family members took turns reading aloud the names of the nearly 3,000 victims, according to the 9/11 Memorial & Museum. The act of naming is still one of the most powerful symbols of the day. The ceremony included six moments of silence: at the times when each of the four hijacked planes crashed or each of the two towers fell, and also for the Pentagon attack and the Flight 93 crash in Pennsylvania.
Those who attended referred to the annual ritual as both painful and healing. New York Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams stood with several officials and leaders among the crowd. Hochul said at the plaza, “we gather to renew a promise that America, and the world, will never forget.”
Pentagon and Shanksville: National reverberations
In Arlington, Virginia, the Pentagon had its own remembrance service to mark the 184 victims perished when American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the U.S. military headquarters with a U.S. Capitol Police officer present and accounted for, never to return home. Donald and Melania Trump were in attendance, evidence of the Pentagon’s relevance at the highest levels of government. Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where passengers of Flight 93 pushed back against a hijacked jet, held its ceremony as well described by some observers as understated yet impactful, focused so much on courage and sacrifice.
Stars and Stripes flew at half-mast from New York to Washington—while “Tribute in Lights” shone blue through the city’s skyline, a powerful tribute of the city visible for miles.
Personal loss, collective memory
The New York Times reported that families traveled from all over the country and internationally to honor their loved ones. Some offered flowers or personal items next to the carved names of their loved ones. One mother, Valentinagin Lygin, traveled with family from North Carolina to honor her son Alexander, who died at 28 in the North Tower. She captured the sentiments of many: “What I want is for people to remember.”
Survivors, first responders, and health advocates gathered at firehouses nearby to raise awareness of continuing challenges to health care and compensation related to exposure at Ground Zero. Already over deaths due to illnesses, representing $400 for FDNY deaths alone, exceeds the count of people who died the morning the towers fell but all people perish in uniform.
America’s pledge: Never to forget
While names rang throughout memorial plazas and moments of silence signaled the irreversible passage of time, public officials from all sectors restated the pledge to never forget the victims, the heroism, and the lasting impact of 9/11 for all time. The attacks killed thousands of individuals and changed policy, security, and the culture of America for generations to come. This year’s ceremony not only honored the events, but the need of care, advocacy, and vigilance against different types of threats that lie before us.
Political, social, and healing implications
Even though moments of political relevance can act as backdrop to days of commemoration, in general, it was nice to see that the majority of candidates and officials, at least momentarily, suspended their campaigns as appropriate respect to these events. The ceremonies are variously run, mostly by public charities and associations, who are striving to create bonds of healing and hope and are striving to state anything political in nature.
As CNN and ABC7NY reported, there are distinct moments each year with the reading of names, survivor testimonies and the synergetic presence of individuals engaged at Ground Zero and the Pentagon. I think this creates an uncomplicated opportunity for hundreds if not thousands of individuals to hope, as a collective social ambition, toward unity that is an increasing challenge to establish within nation.
In this year’s 24th observance of “We Will Never Forget”, it was more than a phrase but a lived promise from the engraved names around the memorial pools in Manhattan to Bruce M. Neary’s name on the walls of the Pentagon memorial. The legacy of September 11 lives deep within every story that is told, every name that is remembered.
