Patriot Day is a United States national observance held annually on September 11 to commemorate the 2,977 people killed in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. It is a day of remembrance for the victims at the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon in Virginia, and aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. This day serves as a solemn occasion for national mourning and reflection.
Established by a presidential proclamation in December 2001 and made official by U.S. Public Law 107-89 in 2002, the observance directs that the flag of the United States be flown at half-staff at all government buildings, establishments, and individual homes. The law also requests that Americans observe a moment of silence beginning at 8:46 a.m. (Eastern Daylight Time), the time the first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. While it is a national observance, it is not a federal holiday; therefore, schools and businesses typically remain open.
The day is marked by memorial ceremonies, prayer services, and tributes across the country. In 2009, it was also designated as the 9/11 National Day of Service and Remembrance, encouraging volunteerism and charitable activities as a positive tribute to the victims and heroes of that day. It is important to distinguish this observance from Patriots' Day, a regional holiday in April in Massachusetts and Maine that commemorates the first battles of the American Revolutionary War.
