Patriot Day is observed in the United States every year on September 11 every year. The Patriot Day is observed each year in memory of the people killed in the September 11 attacks of the year 2001. On this day, the US flag is flown at half-mast at the White House and on all government buildings of the country as a mark of respect to those who died in the attacks. On this day, many people observe a moment of silence at 8:46 AM (Eastern Daylight Time).

Patriot Day is not a federal holiday in the United States. Schools and businesses do not close on this day. A bill to make September 11 a national day of mourning was introduced in the US House on October 25, 2001, to observe September 11 as Patriot Day.  The bill was tabled by Rep. Vito Fossella (R-NY) with 22 co-sponsors, among them 11 Democrats and 11 Republicans. 9/11 Attacks Anniversary: Wild Conspiracy Theories Behind WTC Twin Tower & Pentagon Plane Crash That Stunned Entire World on September 11, 2001.

The joint resolution 71 passed the House by a vote of 407–0, with 25 members not voting. The bill passed the Senate unanimously on November 30. The then President of the US George W Bush signed the resolution into law on December 18. On September 4, 2002, President Bush used the authority of the resolution to proclaim September 11, 2002, as the first Patriot Day. 9/11 Attacks 18th Anniversary: From Attack on Twin Towers of World Trade Center to Pentagon, What Happened on September 11, 2001.

The September 11 attacks were a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda. A total of 2,977 people died and over 25,000 injured in the attack. In addition, at least $10 billion in infrastructure and property damage. Four passenger airliners which had departed from airports in the northeastern United States bound for California were hijacked by 19 al-Qaeda terrorists. Two of the planes, American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, crashed into the North and South towers, respectively, of the World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan. Within minutes both the 110-storey towers collapsed.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 10, 2020 04:11 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).