Americans mark 25 years since 9/11 with remembrance and reflection

The Big Picture

Americans marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks on Friday with solemn ceremonies in New York, at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The attacks killed 2,977 people, excluding the 19 hijackers, according to CNBC, a toll commonly described as nearly 3,000.

Across the country, the anniversary was also observed with local tributes, including ceremonies involving firefighters, first responders and residents in cities such as Chicago, St. Louis and Austin, Texas, NPR reported. The day paired public ritual with private memory for people who remember where they were when hijacked planes struck the United States.

What Happened

On Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers seized four passenger aircraft. Two planes struck the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in New York City, which later collapsed. A third plane hit the Pentagon, and United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in a field near Shanksville after passengers and crew attempted to regain control of the aircraft.

The Flight 93 hijackers were believed to have been aiming for a target in Washington, with reports identifying the U.S. Capitol as the likely target. Forty passengers and crew members were killed aboard the flight.

At Ground Zero, relatives read the names of those killed beside the reflecting pools that mark the footprints of the former towers. Former Presidents Joe Biden and George W. Bush, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Vice President JD Vance attended the New York commemoration, NPR reported. CNBC also reported that former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, along with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, attended.

At the Pentagon, President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth delivered remarks. Trump said the years since the attacks had demonstrated “the even greater power of the American spirit to endure and prevail and to win.” In Pennsylvania, families gathered to honor those aboard Flight 93, while Gov. Josh Shapiro ordered state flags flown at half-staff, according to Al Jazeera.

Why It Matters

The attacks reshaped U.S. policy at home and abroad. They led to the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan and helped usher in the wider “war on terror,” which included the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.

The United Nations said the attacks were an “assault on humanity itself.” Secretary-General António Guterres paid tribute to victims, survivors and first responders, noting that those killed came from the United States and more than 90 other countries.

But the anniversary also renewed attention to the costs borne by people beyond the day of the attacks. Al Jazeera, citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reported that an estimated 400,000 people were exposed to toxic chemicals, including carcinogens, after the Twin Towers collapsed. NPR reported that the World Trade Center Health Program has recorded more than 57,000 cancer cases among people exposed to toxic debris.

Background

Cleanup workers were among those facing lasting health and emotional consequences. NPR reported that many immigrant laborers joined the ground zero cleanup, sometimes with limited protective equipment. Advocates estimate that between 2,000 and 6,000 undocumented workers took part.

A bill intended to provide undocumented ground zero workers a path to citizenship has repeatedly stalled in the House Judiciary Committee, NPR reported. The measure, known as the 9/11 Immigrant Worker Freedom Act, was introduced in 2017 and 2021 and reintroduced in 2025 by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

What Happens Next

Anniversary ceremonies preserve the record of loss for families and younger Americans who did not experience the attacks firsthand. They also underscore unresolved questions about health care for those exposed to debris, the treatment of immigrant cleanup workers and the legacy of counterterrorism policies.

More than 30 independent U.N. experts said some post-9/11 counterterrorism responses had undermined human rights, civil society, democracy and the rule of law. They urged governments to review counterterrorism laws and practices for compliance with international human rights, humanitarian and refugee law.