NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks will be marked once again with the annual reading of the victims’ names, after the pandemic spawned competing ceremonies last year.
Officials from the 9/11 Museum on Thursday said the tradition of reading the victims’ names at the World Trade Center’s memorial plaza will return in September 2021.
“In a few months’ time, 20 years will have passed since our nation was attacked on September 11,” said Mike Bloomberg, the board chairman of the Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum and former mayor of New York City. “We suffered a great tragedy that day and for the weeks and months that followed. We mourned the victims of the attacks and promised to never forget.”
On the 19th anniversary – which took place amid the coronavirus pandemic – the 9/11 museum had decided to play a recording of the names, rather than invite families to gather for an in-person event.
The decision, which was made with pandemic precautions in mind, sparked a bit of a controversy and caused the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation – a group founded by the family of a firefighter who died at the trade center site – to step in and host its own ceremony with a live name reading event.
At the time, Frank Siller, the brother of FDNY firefighter Stephen Siller, said the decision to cancel the event during the pandemic was “mindboggling” and said he felt the foundation had to step in, to honor those who lost their lives on Sept. 11.
The 9/11 Museum also announced Thursday that its annual Tribute in Light, an art installation featuring two beams of light that recreate the appearance of the Twin Towers in the Manhattan skyline, will return as well.
The museum had briefly canceled the tribute last year, until Gov. Andrew Cuomo and other lawmakers stepped in to ensure the art installation could continue with proper coronavirus precautions.
“In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing challenges facing our nation and the global community, the resilience, compassion and hope demonstrated two decades ago in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks offer invaluable lessons now,” said 9/11 Memorial & Museum President and CEO Alice Greenwald.
She added: “During this 20th anniversary year, it is our privilege to share these lessons with a new generation, teach them about the ongoing repercussions of the 9/11 attacks and inspire them with the idea that, even in the darkest of times, we can come together, support one another and find the strength to renew and rebuild.”
The announcement that family members will be back at the official ceremony this year was made six months prior to the event.
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