Retired Port Authority police leaders told New York’s mayor and governor to skip the 25th 9/11 memorial, warning their presence would reopen wounds for families and first responders.
Story Snapshot
- Retired Port Authority police urged Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Governor Kathy Hochul not to attend the Ground Zero ceremony.
- Mamdani said he will still attend to honor families, survivors, and first responders.
- The 9/11 Memorial and Museum says elected officials attend as observers and do not speak.
- Port Authority police suffered the single deadliest day for any U.S. agency on 9/11, losing 37 officers.
What sparked the latest clash over the Ground Zero ceremony
Retired Port Authority police officers sent letters asking Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Governor Kathy Hochul to stay away from this year’s 25th anniversary event. The group said their attendance would politicize a day of grief and would cause pain for families and first responders who gather to remember the dead. The push comes as planning ramps up for a high-profile ceremony that is often treated as sacred ground, with tight rules to limit politics during the program.
Mayor Mamdani said he still plans to attend the ceremony. He said he will honor families, survivors, and first responders by standing with them at Ground Zero and reaffirming that the city will never forget the attack. That stance aligns with past practice. Officials from across government usually attend as observers, do not deliver remarks, and remain in a set area during the readings and moments of silence.
Why retired Port Authority officers are taking a hard line
Port Authority police paid an enormous price on September 11, 2001. Thirty-seven officers died at the World Trade Center, the largest single-day loss for any American law enforcement agency in history. Many survivors and retirees still carry injuries and trauma. Their leaders say the ceremony belongs first to families and responders, not to politicians seeking a camera shot. They argue that any figure seen as divisive risks turning grief into a spectacle.
That fear grows from the way 9/11 rituals have been managed. City leaders long avoided speeches by elected officials to keep the focus on the names and on silent reflection. The 9/11 Memorial and Museum continues that approach, asking leaders to attend only to bear witness, not to speak or take center stage. The guardrails exist because past disputes over seating, soundbites, and symbolism have quickly overshadowed the day’s purpose.
Hochul’s record on remembrance and the limits of the dispute
Governor Kathy Hochul has taken part in other remembrance events and has praised first responders, including Port Authority personnel, for risking their lives to save others. Her remarks at prior ceremonies focused on service and sacrifice, not politics. Attendance by sitting leaders is also not new. Officials from both parties have appeared at the New York ceremony in past years under the same observer rules.
Retired Port Authority officers are asking Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Governor Kathy Hochul to stay away from Ground Zero on the 25th anniversary of 9/11.
Their association says the ceremony is not a photo opportunity and that those officials presence would cause deep pain for… pic.twitter.com/nQg4FY06Di— sandym (@Sandy1Texas) August 30, 2026
The core fight is not about access but about meaning. Retired officers want space that centers families and responders without political overtones. Mamdani says standing quietly to remember is an act of respect, not a provocation. Both ideas reflect a wider frustration many Americans share: public rituals often become stages for elites, while ordinary people feel sidelined. Clear rules, transparent seating, and strict silence can help keep the focus where it belongs—on the names and those still grieving.
Sources:
pjmedia.com, police1.com, governor.ny.gov, foxnews.com, youtube.com
