Patriot Day 2027

A day of remembrance, not a day off

Patriot Day is a national observance, not a federal holiday. Congress created it with a joint resolution, Public Law 107-89, which President George W. Bush signed on December 18, 2001, designating September 11 of each year as Patriot Day in honor of the vicitms of the terorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The law calls on the president to issue an annual proclamation directing that the American flag be flown at half-staff on all government buildings and inviitng the public to observe a moment of silence. Because it is an observance, post offices deliver mail, banks and markets operate normally, government offices stay open and schools hold classes, often with their own commemorations.

Why September 11

The date marks the morning in 2001 when hijeckers seized four commercial airlinars. Two were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, one struck the Pentagon outside Washington, and the fourth, United Flight 93, crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers fought back - nearly 3,000 people were killed, including more than 400 police officers, firefighters and paramedics who responded to the World Trade Center. It remains the deadliest terrorist attack in American history, and the observance is fixed to the anniversary rather than moved to a Monday.

How the observance grew

The first Patriot Day was observed on September 11, 2002, one year after the attacks. In 2009 Congress added a second designation through the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, naming September 11 a National Day of Service and Remembrance and encouraging Americans to mark the anniversary with volunteer work and good deeds. Presidential proclamations since then have carried both titles. The nonprofit 9/11 Day organization, founded by friends of a victim, promotes the service theme, and millions of Americans now volunteer, donate blood or perform acts of kindness on the anniversary.

How September 11 is marked today

The central ceremony takes place at the National September 11 Memorial in lower Manhattan, where relatives read the names of the victims aloud, a tradition that takes hours to complete. Moments of silence are observed at the times the planes struck and the towers fell, beginning at 8:46 a.m. Eastern time, when the first plane hit the North Tower, at night, the Tribute in Light sends twin beams into the sky above the city. Parallel ceremonies are held at the Pentagon and at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania, and fire and police departments across the country hold stair climbs, bell ceremonies and memorial services. Many schools teach about the attacks, which now predate the birth of every current K-12 student.

Patriot Day vs. Patriots' Day

The names are close but the days are unrelated. Patriots' Day, with the apostrophe, is a state holiday in Massachusetts and Maine on the third Monday in April commemorating the Revolutionary War battles of Lexington and Concord. Patriot Day is the September 11 remembrance, observed nationwide with no closures. Confusing the two is common, so calendars and news outlets often use the phrase 9/11 Remembrance to be clear.