Patriot Day
In the United States, Patriot Day occurs on September 11 of each year, designated in memory of the nearly three thousand who died in the September 11, 2001 attacks. However, most Americans refer to the day as "Nine-Eleven (9/11)", "September 11th", or some variation thereof.
U.S. House Joint Resolution 71 was approved by a vote of 407-0 on October 25, 2001. It requested that the President designate September 11 of each year as "Patriot Day." President George W. Bush signed the resolution into law on December 18, 2001 (as Public Law 107-89). It is a discretionary day of remembrance.
Initially, the day was called the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for the Victims Of the Terrorist Attacks.
On September 4, 2002, President Bush used his authority created by the resolution and proclaimed September 11, 2002 as Patriot Day. He has continued to make similar declarations every year since.
On this day, the President directs that the flag of the United States be flown at half-staff and displayed from individual American homes, at the White House, and on all U.S. government buildings and establishments, home and abroad. The President also asks Americans to observe a moment of silence beginning at 8:46 A.M. (Eastern Daylight Time) marking the first plane crash on Sept. 11, 2001.
Some countries have also shared Patriot Day with the U.S. as well. For example, in Canada, the prime minister orders flags on the Peace Tower (in Ottawa on Parliament Hill) and on all Canadian diplomatic missions in the U.S be flown at half-staff.
History
The bill to make September 11th a holiday was introduced in the U.S. House on 25 October 2001 by Rep. Vito Fossella (R-N.Y.) with 22 co-sponsors, among them eleven Democrats and 11 Republicans. [1]. It passed the House by a vote of 407-0, with 25 members not voting,[2] and passed the Senate unanimously on November 30. It was signed by President Bush, without ceremony, on December 18 as Public Law No. 107-89.
Its original co-sponsors in the House were:
- Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.)
- Rick Boucher (D-Va.)
- William G. Cain (R-N.Y.)
- Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.)
- Phil English (R-Penn.)
- Randy Forbes (R-Va.)
- Benjamin A. Gilman (R-N.Y.)
- Felix Grucci, Jr. (R-N.Y.)
- Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.)
- Steve Israel (D-N.Y.)
- Peter T. King (R-N.Y.)
- Ray LaHood (R-Ill.)
- Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.)
- Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.)
- Michael R. McNulty (D-N.Y.)
- Jim Moran (D-Va.)
- Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.)
- John E. Peterson (R-Penn.)
- Thomas M. Reynolds (R-N.Y.)
- Ed Schrock (R-Va.)
- Don Sherwood (R-Penn.)
- Ed Towns (D-N.Y.)
- James T. Walsh (R-N.Y.)
Controversy
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Some greeting card companies have released Patriot Day cards, causing controversy.
Despite the law's passage and President Bush's proclamation, the effort to make September 11 a national holiday has been rejected by a few who view the effort as an act of jingoism and "handing the emotional victory over to the terrorists."[citation needed] Specifically, some object to the naming of the day as 'Patriot Day,' as the day is intended as a memorial to the victims of a terrorist attack and arguably has nothing to do with patriotism or patriots.
Confusion
This day of observance should not be (but often is) confused with Patriots' Day, a holiday celebrated primarily in northern New England, Massachusetts, and the Adirondack region of New York. It commemorates the Battle of Lexington and Concord during the American Revolutionary War.