A nervous nation Wednesday marked the first anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks with solemn memorials, moments of silence and special prayers to mourn the more than 3,000 who lost their lives when four hijacked airliners crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field.
With the country on high alert, some 340 cities orchestrated official commemorations complete with church bell ringing while thousands of churches, synagogues and mosques held their own memorial services.
Many of the memorials began Tuesday night.
As the names of the dead were read at Ground Zero in New York, some 100 anti-war protesters gathered at Union Square about 30 blocks north for a quiet "lie-in," protesting any war against Iraq. A larger contingent of anti-war protesters is expected Thursday near the United Nations where world leaders will be listening to President Bush making his pitch for action against Iraq.
Chicago-based insurance giant Aon, which lost 175 employees in the twin towers' collapse, took out full-page newspaper ads, reading: "We will always remember our friends and family September 11, 2001." It's signed simply, "Aon." The rest of the ad is white space.
At the Sears Tower, one of the world's tallest buildings, a number of companies decided to close for the day. Extra security personnel could be seen standing outside the building's entrances and 3-foot-high concrete barriers painted red, white and blue were in place to keep vehicles away.
Some people found it difficult to look at the black structure that soars 1,450 feet, actually turning their heads away as they passed.
"It's just too creepy to think about, it could just as easily have been us (that was hit) last year, and memorial services taking place in Chicago instead of New York," said Jack Towers of suburban Arlington Heights, Ill.
Many commuters wore red, white and blue clothing, dresses, neckties and scarves in a show of patriotism and some cars flew small American flags.
Religious leaders in Chicago composed a special non-denominational prayer to be read at the city's Daley Center ceremony. It concludes: "Despite our weakness, we have faith that with You, we are capable of goodness. Renew in us a passion to live according to the highest teachings of our respective faith traditions. Bind us together in unity, may our remembrance move us toward humility and justice. Above all, give us hope: hope in each other, hope in the dawn of a new future. Amen."
Somber security personnel, airline workers and passengers stood for an emotional moment of silence at O'Hare International Airport to remember the victims at the exact time the first plane slammed into the World Trade Center. "God Bless America" was played on the public address system.
At 10:30 a.m., Washington emergency dispatchers imposed a minute of radio silence on all police and firefighter radios and ordered all emergency lights on.
"It is not how they died, but how they lived that make them heroes," a dispatcher said on all channels. "You may now resume transmissions. Let's all be careful out there."
In Boston, where two jetliners were hijacked for the terror attacks on the twin towers, Acting Gov. Jane Swift led a memorial service on the steps of the Massachusetts Statehouse and a reading of the names of the 93 Massachusetts residents killed on Sept. 11.
Amid stepped up security, Swift and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino had urged residents to attend memorial events despite the "orange alert" issued by the federal government.
"I encourage people to come out and participate in the national remembrances," Swift said, "and to know we have taken all necessary precautionary measures to assure their safety."
Menino and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., hosted a "Celebration of Life" memorial service at the historic Faneuil Hall in downtown Boston, where the names of the Massachusetts residents killed were also read.
In Oklahoma City, survivors and families of some of the 168 people killed seven years ago in the federal building bombing gathered Tuesday night for a candlelight vigil honoring the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks.
About 100 people gathered under the branches of the Survivor Tree, a giant elm that survived the blast and is now part of the Oklahoma City National Memorial, which sits on the site of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Kathleen Treanor, who lost her 4-year-old daughter Ashley, said they feel close to the Sept. 11 victims.
"This is just families and survivors and rescue personnel," she said. "We're standing shoulder to shoulder with our comrades in pain in New York and Washington, D.C."
Treanor traveled to New York last year to help victims cope with the tragedy.
One of the organizers read a letter from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg who said Oklahoma City and New York are linked forever by their mutual tragedies.
Late Wednesday, The Bunker, a bar near Watertown, Wis., about 40 miles west of Milwaukee, planned a "Burn (Osama) bin Laden" party. Bar owner Jeff Hartzheim, a Vietnam veteran, said he realizes his antics may offend some, but "it's all in fun."
