News Release: Plans to Commemorate 20th Anniversary
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 11, 2021
9/11 MEMORIAL & MUSEUM PREPARES TO LEAD NATION IN COMMEMORATING THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 ATTACKS
Honoring, Educating and Inspiring Are the Foundation of Anniversary Year Activities Offered via Live and Digital Platforms
(New York) March 11, 2021 – Six months from today, the National September 11 Memorial & Museum located at the World Trade Center will lead the nation in commemorating the 20th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks that took the lives of 2,977 men, women and children in New York City, Arlington, Va. and near Shanksville, Pa. Twenty years after the attacks that changed our world forever, the 9/11 Memorial & Museum stands as a sacred symbol of fortitude and resilience in the face of unimaginable tragedy.
“In a few months’ time, 20 years will have passed since our nation was attacked on September 11,” 9/11 Memorial & Museum Board Chairman Michael R. Bloomberg said. “We suffered a great tragedy that day and for the weeks and months that followed. We mourned the victims of the attacks and promised to never forget. The 9/11 Memorial & Museum is helping to keep that promise by preserving their memories and the difficult but important history of the terror attacks. While we are recovering from a health crisis that has touched millions of lives, the Memorial & Museum is also a symbol of our resilience and our capacity to endure our darkest moments and overcome them.”
“In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing challenges facing our nation and the global community, the resilience, compassion and hope demonstrated two decades ago in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks offer invaluable lessons now,” said 9/11 Memorial & Museum President and CEO Alice M. Greenwald. “During this 20th anniversary year, it is our privilege to share these lessons with a new generation, teach them about the ongoing repercussions of the 9/11 attacks and inspire them with the idea that, even in the darkest of times, we can come together, support one another and find the strength to renew and rebuild.”
20th Anniversary Events
In support of our goals, we will host multiple events and activations throughout the year while collaborating with key partners. Below is a selection of some of the events and related 20th anniversary content we anticipate during this signature year. As details are finalized, we will continue to share opportunities to commemorate during the 20th anniversary on our website at www.911memorial.org.
Annual September 11 Commemoration at the 9/11 Memorial
The annual ceremony for family members which includes the live in-person reading of the names by family members of the 2,983 victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks and the February 26, 1993 bombing at the World Trade Center.
Tribute in Light & Citywide Tribute in Lights
Tribute in Light is a public art installation consisting of two beams of light shining four miles into the sky above New York City from dusk on September 11 to dawn on September 12.
Presentation of Tribute in Light is made possible thanks to generous support from the Bill & Linda Haugland Family Foundation and Lower Manhattan Development Corporation.
Tribute in Lights is a citywide initiative in partnership with NYC & Company which brings together cultural institutions, corporate buildings and landmarks across New York City who participate by lighting up their facades and spires in Memorial blue.
Anniversary in the Schools
Anniversary in the Schools is a pre-recorded webinar made available on the anniversary that includes first-hand storytelling from 9/11 family members, survivors, rescue and recovery workers and more, contextualized by introductions from members of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s Education staff. Since 2016, Anniversary in the Schools has reached more than a million participants in all 50 states and 40 countries. To encourage learning and commemoration beyond the classroom, we also invite community organizations to register for this annual webinar.
The webinar is made possible thanks to generous support from the New York Life Foundation.
New York Representatives & 9/11 Community Reflect on 20th Anniversary
"Twenty years after 9/11, I remember the 2,977 – some of them my friends – who were tragically murdered that day by terrorists, in addition to the countless first responders, local residents, and others who have died from 9/11-related cancers since," said U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. "But I also pause to remember the profound sense of common purpose and unity and selflessness that this tragedy spurred in New York and across our whole nation. In honor of those lost that day, we never stopped searching and we never stopped finding ways to learn from our mistakes and we never stopped moving forward to rebuild this place and our city and our nation so that it is stronger and wiser and more compassionate and better. We owe a great debt to those who died, and whose stories are honored and shared with the world every single day at the 9/11 Memorial & Museum."
Schumer continued: "It is a bitter irony that COVID-19 continues to exact a deadly toll on 9/11 survivors who are suffering from respiratory and cardiopulmonary diseases. Over the last year, I have fought with all my might in Washington to deliver urgently needed relief so that we can get more vaccines in the arms of our highest-risk individuals and save lives. We are finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and just as we did in the aftermath of 9/11, New York will come back stronger than ever before. Two decades ago, we showed the world the way forward from unfathomable tragedy, and so we will again."
“While nearly 20 years have passed since the attacks of September 11, 2001, for so many, the pain and loss of that devastating day remain as searing as if it occurred yesterday. While the years that followed have seen the tragedy of that day transformed from shocked headlines into shared history, for survivors, rescue workers, the loved ones of those we lost and New Yorkers both young and old, even a rebuilt downtown New York City does little to make the memories of that day less vivid. That’s why I’m so glad that the 9/11 Memorial & Museum has planned so many means of memorializing the 9/11 attacks, ensuring that this meaningful anniversary will not go unobserved,” said Congressman Jerrold Nadler. “Whether it’s Tribute in Light—that seeks to bring the entire city together in shared commemoration—or the 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s Anniversary in the Schools effort to inform younger generations about the lives of those we lost, I’m grateful that the heroism and sacrifice of that most painful day will be remembered.”
“Each anniversary of September 11 brings a new chance to reflect, mourn and reconnect with the lessons we learned when our city was at its lowest,” said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. “The 9/11 Memorial & Museum tells a powerful story of resilience, recovery and rebirth. I look forward to joining New Yorkers in upholding our promise to never forget and standing with them to write a new chapter in this city’s future.”
"We did not come this far, to just come this far! A united nation will put aside their differences for a brief moment in history and collectively remember those we lost to senseless violence 1,040 Tuesdays ago,” said 9/11 responder and FealGood President John Feal. “And this nation will continue to mourn the loss of life from those who continue to get sick and pass away from their heroic actions. It is my hope that this milestone can unite us once again."
Four Key Goals for the Next 20 Years
Working from a continued mission to honor, educate and inspire, the Memorial & Museum will focus programming to support four key goals during this commemorative year to ensure a firm foundation for the next 20 years:
Honoring through Commemoration
By hosting annual anniversary remembrance ceremonies paying tribute to the victims of the attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993, as well as observing the conclusion of rescue and recovery efforts in the aftermath of 9/11, offering year-round, free access to the Memorial and assisting other communities affected by extreme violence, we are working to increase empathy and understanding in the world at large.
Understanding the Ongoing Repercussions of 9/11
By educating the public about the ongoing implications of the attacks and their aftermath through the collection, preservation and exhibition of material and digital artifacts, and by continuing to highlight the public health issues affecting tens of thousands stricken with 9/11- related illnesses who are now especially vulnerable to COVID-19, we are working to build a dynamic understanding of the implications of health-related decisions in disaster relief.
Educating a New Generation
By harnessing the power of inspirational storytelling to educate those with no lived memory of the 9/11 attacks, our virtual offerings like our Stories of Hope storytelling series helps us to share lessons that will continue to inspire mutual support and acts of kindness in the next generation.
Building a More Secure World
By increasing public awareness of post-9/11 threats and leveraging our institutional convening power to provide educational, networking and partnership opportunities for those charged with ensuring public safety and security, we are working to provide support to global, national, state and city leadership and equip them with additional tools in their ever-increasing work.
Photos and b-roll assets are available upon request at press@911memorial.org. Please credit the 9/11 Memorial & Museum for film and photo assets.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL SEPTEMBER 11 MEMORIAL & MUSEUM
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum is the nonprofit organization that oversees operations for the 9/11 Memorial and 9/11 Memorial Museum. Located on eight of the 16 acres of the World Trade Center site, the Memorial and Museum remember and honor the 2,983 people who were killed in the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993. The Memorial plaza design consists of two reflecting pools formed in the footprints of the original Twin Towers surrounded by swamp white oak trees. The Museum displays more than 900 personal and monumental objects while its collection includes more than 72,500 items that present intimate stories of loss, compassion, reckoning and recovery linked to the events of 9/11 and the aftermath. The Museum also explores the global impact of 9/11 and its continuing significance through education programs, public programs, live talks and film features that cover contemporary topics designed for diverse audiences. For more information or to reserve a ticket to the 9/11 Memorial Museum, please visit 911memorial.org.
MEDIA INQUIRIES
Kate Monaghan Connolly/Michael Frazier
(212) 312-8832
press@911memorial.org
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