Key Takeaways

• Victims’ families and survivors gathered at Ground Zero in New York City for the Sept. 11, 2026, remembrance ceremony.
• The 25th-anniversary observance included an additional moment of silence recognizing the toll on those impacted by 9/11-related illnesses.
• Public officials, civic organizations and sports teams shared tributes honoring victims, survivors and first responders.

Twenty-five years later, the promise remains the same: Never Forget.

On Friday (Sept. 11), #NeverForget takes over the internet as New Yorkers, public figures, organizations and sports teams mark a quarter-century since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Nearly 3,000 people were killed that day, including 2,753 in New York City.

According to CBS News, victims’ families and survivors gathered at Ground Zero alongside all living former presidents and Mayor Zohran Mamdanifor the annual remembrance ceremony. This year’s observance also included an additional moment of silence recognizing the toll on those impacted by 9/11-related illnesses.

Across the city and online, the anniversary became a moment to remember not only those who died, but also the people who stepped forward to help when New York needed them most.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani remembers 9/11 victims on 25th anniversary

In a video shared on X, Mamdani reflected on both the devastation of the attacks and the humanity New Yorkers showed in their aftermath. “Sept. 11 was a horrific act of terror, a day of immeasurable loss,” he began. “2,753 parents and children, husbands and wives, friends and colleagues, 2,753 universes gone in an instant.”

The mayor also acknowledged the thousands who have since died from illnesses linked to the toxic air at Ground Zero before turning his attention to how New Yorkers responded in the days following the attacks. “We remember the thousands upon thousands of New Yorkers who lined up for hours to donate blood. We remember the people who opened their homes to those who could not get home,” he said.

The 34-year-old also recalled workers who helped colleagues descend hundreds of stairs, only to turn around and head back up to help others. “Twenty-five years later, we have a sacred obligation to those who were stolen from us to care for one another as they cared for strangers, to live lives worthy of the sacrifices they made, and to build a city worthy of their courage, a city where we run toward one another,” he continued.

Mamdani closed the video with a simple message: “That is how we remember.” His accompanying X caption carried that remembrance one step further, ending, “Today, New York remembers. We will Never Forget.”

9/11 tributes mark 25 years of #NeverForget

Elsewhere in New York, Bryant Park placed 2,753 chairs across its lawn, one for each person who lost their lives at the World Trade Center. Its tribute honored the victims, their families and first responders while declaring that New Yorkers “will #neverforget.” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also remembered those killed and the first responders who risked their lives, writing, “We will #NeverForget their bravery in the face of such terrifying tragedy.”

NBA Cares, the New York Yankees and others joined the online remembrance. Former NFL player Ryan Clark posted, “25 years! Thinking [of] those who were lost, & those who became heroes. Blessings to all. #NeverForget.”

Former President Barack Obama offered a reflection for Americans who were children in 2001 — or had not yet been born. Remembering the fear that followed the attacks as well as the unity that emerged afterward, he wrote that “we can survive even our darkest days as long as we move forward as one nation and one people.”

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center also turned attention to Marcy Borders, the survivor known around the world as the “Dust Lady” after she was photographed covered in ash while escaping the World Trade Center. Borders died of stomach cancer in 2015.

A quarter-century has passed, but Friday’s tributes made clear why two words continue to carry so much weight.