In the United States, Patriot Day is observed annually on the fixed date of September 11. For the year 2025, Patriot Day will take place on Thursday, September 11, 2025. This date commemorates the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Patriot Day was established by presidential proclamation on December 18, 2001, as a national day of remembrance for the 2,977 people killed in the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and in the crashed United Airlines Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The U.S. Flag Code directs that the flag of the United States be flown at half-staff on all government buildings and establishments. A moment of silence is traditionally observed at 8:46 AM (Eastern Daylight Time), the time the first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. This observance should not be confused with Patriots' Day, a state holiday in Massachusetts and Maine held in April to commemorate the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
While Patriot Day is a national observance, it is not a federal public holiday, meaning that schools and businesses do not typically close. In 2009, Congress further designated the date as the "National Day of Service and Remembrance," encouraging Americans to engage in charitable service and community volunteering as a positive and forward-looking tribute to the victims, survivors, and first responders of the 9/11 attacks. This dual designation emphasizes both solemn remembrance and constructive community action.
