New York City Honors, Remembers the Nearly 3,000 Killed on Sept. 11, 2021

By Yehudit Garmaise

     The thousands of loved ones, clutching photographs of those they lost in the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, we're joined, yesterday morning, by Presidents Biden, Obama, and Clinton and their wives, Mayor Bill de Blasio, former New York City mayors Michael Bloomberg and Rudy Giuliani, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and FBI Director Christopher Wray who stood side-by-side, at a solemn ceremony at Ground Zero, the space where the twin towers of the World Trade Centers once stood.

    In that space, in which firefighters and emergency workers worked through the still-smoking rubble for months to rescue victims, now proudly stands One World Trade Center, a 1,776-foot office building that cost $3.8 billion and is the most expensive skyscraper ever built in the US.

   Also at Ground Zero, now stands a 9/11 memorial in which the names of the 2,983 people who were killed are etched in bronze above pools of water.

   Also in the works nearby are 330 units of affordable housing for qualifying families of three, or equivalent, with a household income of up to $51,000, the Wall Street Journal reported about construction is expected to begin in 2023.

     Among those who honored are those who were killed both 20 years ago yesterday by Al Qaeda terrorists and on Feb. 26, 1993, in the World Trade Center bombing. 

    Yesterday morning, New Yorkers and others first stood for the national anthem, and then, at 8:46am, which was the moment at which American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the north tower, everyone observed a moment of silence, as has been the tradition for the past 20 years.

    Attendees also observed moments of silence at 9:03 am, when United flight 175 hit the south tower, at 9:59 a.m., when the south tower came down, and 10:28 a.m., when the north tower of the World Trade Center collapsed.

     In a recitation that took four hours, the names of every one of the 2,983 people who died was read before family members shared anecdotes and memories of their loved ones.

     At a ceremony at Shanksville, Pa., where United flight 93 crashed after passengers heroically fought back and tried to thwart the Al Qaeda terrorists who had hijacked the plane, former President George W. Bush, who was president at the time of attacks, remembered the day that "the world was loud with carnage and sirens.

    “And then silent with voices."

     On Friday, Gov. Kathy Hochul told New Yorkers that they can expect to see increased police presences throughout the city this weekend.

     “We've deployed more resources for the Port Authority, the MTA,” said Gov. Hochul. “You'll see more people, you'll see individuals with long arms, you'll see them looking a little bit militarized, but the idea is to let anyone know that you mess with New York, there’ll be consequences.” 

   On Friday, Mayor de Blasio reassured New Yorkers that “there are no specific and credible threats directed against New York City at this time,” but that “the NYPD is watching, not daily, not hourly: minute-by-minute, with extraordinary intelligence gathering and counter-terrorism capacity, which we have built up in recent years.

    “Because even though it's 20 years later, we see threats all over this world directed at us, and we see challenges that are homegrown as well.

    “The NYPD is watching constantly.

     “We also have a mission to protect the lives of every single New Yorker, and the threats are real. They are real and they are consistent, which is why we have to be vigilant.”

     "We have seen growing evidence that the dangers to our country can come, not only across borders, but from violence that gathers within," former President Bush said in Shanksville, Pa, "There is little cultural overlap between violent extremists abroad and violent extremists at home ... [but] they are children of the same foul spirit, and it is our continuing duty to confront them."

    Also yesterday in New York, former President Donald Trump made a surprise appearance at the NYPD’s 17th Precinct, where showed support for New York’s police officers and firefighters and hinted that he would be running for president in 2024.

    "I grew up with you, and you are New York's finest,” said Trump. “You're incredible people. And I know many of you.

   “If they let you do your job you wouldn’t have crime in New York!”

     "We love the blue," Trump said. "I'll say it loud. You know you're not supposed to say that. We love the blue!"

    “20 years later,” Gov. Hochul said on Friday, “we never forget, but we go forth into the future steeled in the conviction that yes, we are knocked down, but we are never out.

     “Whether it's a terrorist attack, whether it's the pandemic: don't bet against New Yorkers.”

     American flags flew at half-staff yesterday, but the day was marked by light, as 13 state landmarks: such as One World Trade Center, the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, and the Kosciuszko Bridge were lit blue.

    Last night, Boro Parkers might have seen the light beams from the “Tribute in Light” installation, which can be viewed from a 60-mile radius from the city and has shone every Sept. 11 since 2002.

    The light installation, which is assembled on the roof of the Battery Parking Garage south of the 9/11 Memorial, is comprised of twin beams that reach up to four miles into the sky and are comprised of 88 7,000-watt lightbulbs that are positioned into two 48-foot squares, which echo the shape of the Twin Towers, and project an otherworldly aura of those who were tragically lost.