The nation observed a somber 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks as ceremonies unfolded this morning at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in Manhattan, the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Va., and the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pa. Gatherings included the reading of victims’ names, tolling of bells and moments of silence timed to the moments when hijacked planes struck and when towers collapsed.

Organizers at the New York memorial said the service would “honor the memory of those lost and recognize the continuing impact on survivors, first responders and families.” The National 9/11 Memorial & Museum, which lists 2,977 victims of the attacks, streamed the ceremony live and coordinated local access amid heavy security and street closures. The Pentagon observance brought military and civilian officials together to pay tribute to the 184 people killed at the Defense Department complex. Officials at the Flight 93 site marked the crash that claimed the lives of passengers and crew who fought back against the hijackers.

The rituals of remembrance — name readings, pauses at specific times, and the placing of tributes at memorial pools — are familiar, but the gatherings also renewed attention to policy legacies that remain unresolved. Lawmakers and advocacy groups have increasingly pressed for sustained funding and oversight of the World Trade Center Health Program and the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, programs created in the decade after the attacks to address chronic illnesses, cancer diagnoses and disability among survivors and first responders.

“Recognition is not only ceremonial,” said a representative of a 9/11 family advocacy coalition. “It requires political will to ensure that healthcare, compensation and research continue while survivors continue to need help.” Congress has periodically reauthorized and funded these programs, but advocates warn gaps in coverage and delays in adjudication persist for some claimants, a point that has bipartisan resonance in districts with large numbers of affected constituents.

The anniversary also returned focus to the broader security architecture that emerged from 2001: expanded intelligence authorities, the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, transformed immigration and aviation security regimes, and sustained foreign policy commitments. Debates about the balance between civil liberties and national security remain active in courts and legislatures, and the political rhetoric surrounding 9/11 continues to feature in campaigns and policy debates—especially on veterans’ care, emergency preparedness and counterterrorism spending.

Attendance at today’s events reflected civic engagement across generations: relatives of the victims, uniformed responders, public officials and students who were born after 2001 or were too young to remember the day. Many watched the proceedings online or on network broadcasts, mirroring a migration to digital access that has broadened participation but also shifted how public memory is mediated.

As the ceremonies closed, officials reiterated dual commitments: to preserve the factual record and individual stories of loss, and to hold institutions accountable for addressing the long-term consequences of the attacks. Those commitments, advocates say, will be measured not only in words at memorials but in program funding, legislative oversight and the responsiveness of public agencies to survivors’ needs in the years ahead.