For thousands of Americans who lost husbands, wives, children, siblings, friends and fellow first responders on September 11, 2001, Ground Zero is not another stop on a politician’s calendar.
It is sacred ground.
Now, as the nation approaches the 25th anniversary of the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil, a growing campaign led by relatives of 9/11 victims is asking New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani not to attend the annual remembrance ceremony at the World Trade Center site.
The dispute has become intensely personal. An online petition organized by 9/11 relatives had surpassed 43,000 signatures by July 29, according to recent reporting, while Mamdani has made clear that he intends to attend.
The families behind the petition argue that Mamdani’s presence would distract from a day intended for remembrance and reopen wounds that, for many, have never healed.
Mamdani sees it differently. He says he intends to stand with the families, survivors and first responders and honor those forever affected by the terrorist attacks.
Twenty-five years later, the battle is no longer only over how America remembers September 11.
It is also over who grieving families believe should stand beside them while they remember.
9/11 Families Launch Campaign to Keep Mamdani Away
The petition was organized in part by Giovanni Galante, a 9/11 widower whose 29-year-old wife, Grace Catherine Galante, worked on the 105th floor of the World Trade Center’s North Tower.
Galante told CBS News New York that organizers believed Mamdani’s attendance would disrespect their deceased family members because of people the mayor has supported. CBS reported Tuesday that the petition had more than 23,000 signatures; subsequent reporting put the number above 43,000 by Wednesday.
The petition asks organizers to consider whether Mamdani’s participation is consistent with the commemoration’s purpose, pointing to what organizers characterize as troubling public positions and associations.
Those claims need to be distinguished from established facts: the petition reflects the organizers’ judgments about Mamdani’s record; it does not establish that Mamdani supports terrorism.
But for the relatives behind the campaign, perception matters enormously on September 11.
They do not want political controversy overshadowing the names of the dead.
A Widow Remembers Her Husband’s Last Decision
Among the New Jersey relatives supporting the effort is Meryl Mayo-Marshall, whose husband, Robert J. Mayo, was a deputy fire safety director at the World Trade Center.
On September 11, 2001, Mayo was helping evacuate people from the complex.
According to Mayo-Marshall’s account, she pleaded with her husband to leave. Instead, he stayed because helping people escape buildings was what he had been trained to do.
Mayo was 46.
He was last seen in the lobby of the North Tower before it collapsed.
Mayo-Marshall was left a widow and single mother at 42.
In the quarter-century since the attacks, she has returned repeatedly to Ground Zero for the annual commemoration. She has even stood at the podium and participated in the reading of the victims’ names.
For families like hers, September 11 is not history.
It is the day the phone stopped ringing.
The chair remained empty.
A spouse never came through the front door again.
Children grew up without a parent.
And thousands of families were forced to build new lives around an absence that never disappeared.
That is why the question of who attends the ceremony can carry emotional weight far beyond ordinary politics.
Why Mamdani’s Critics Object
The petition’s supporters point to several controversies surrounding Mamdani, including his past response to the phrase “globalize the intifada” and associations with controversial public figures.
Some organizers have also criticized his interactions with political commentator Hasan Piker, who has faced backlash over past remarks concerning 9/11.
Those controversies have led petition supporters to argue that Mamdani is an inappropriate presence at a ceremony dedicated to victims of Islamist terrorism.
Again, there is an important distinction:
Critics accuse Mamdani of having associations and positions they consider incompatible with the spirit of the ceremony. Mamdani disputes the broader characterization of his views and has explicitly described September 11 as a horrific terrorist attack.
That distinction matters even when emotions surrounding the issue are understandably intense.
The question before organizers is therefore not whether a petition has proven allegations against the mayor.
It is whether the objections of thousands of signatories—including relatives of victims—should determine whether an elected mayor attends one of New York City’s most important annual commemorations.
Mamdani Says He Is Going
Mamdani has given his answer.
He plans to attend.
Asked about survivors and family members who want him to stay away, Mamdani said he would honor the families, survivors and first responders by standing alongside them at the 25th-anniversary commemoration. He also described September 11 as a solemn day for New Yorkers and Americans.
His office has likewise indicated that he intends to participate despite the campaign.
That sets up an extraordinary scene for September 11, 2026.
The sitting mayor of New York City could arrive at Ground Zero knowing that thousands have signed a petition asking him not to be there.
Not Every 9/11 Family Member Wants Mamdani Excluded
The opposition to Mamdani should not be portrayed as unanimous among survivors or 9/11 families.
It isn’t.
Some people directly affected by the attacks have said they do not object to the mayor attending.
That disagreement illustrates something easily lost in political coverage: there is no single “9/11 family” position on contemporary politics.
Thousands of families experienced September 11 differently.
Some support the petition.
Others oppose excluding the mayor.
Still others may simply want politicians and political controversies kept as far away from the ceremony as possible.
Historically, elected leaders from different parties have attended the Ground Zero commemoration.
The ceremony itself is deliberately centered on the victims rather than political speeches.
That tradition is precisely why the current controversy is so sensitive.
The Names—Not Politicians—Are the Heart of September 11
The power of the annual ceremony comes largely from its simplicity.
The names are read.
One after another.
Nearly 3,000 human beings.
Not statistics.
Names.
The reflecting pools now occupy the footprints where the Twin Towers stood, surrounded by the names of those killed.
For the families, those names represent lives interrupted on an ordinary Tuesday morning.
Office workers.
Firefighters.
Police officers.
Flight crews.
Passengers.
Restaurant employees.
Security guards.
Financial workers.
Maintenance crews.
People who went to work.
People who boarded airplanes.
People who ran toward danger.
People who never came home.
That is why some relatives resist anything they believe transforms September 11 into another political battlefield.
Robert Mayo Ran Toward the Danger
Mayo-Marshall’s account of her husband’s final hours captures something that cannot be measured by polling or politics.
Robert Mayo had an opportunity to think about himself.
Instead, according to his widow, he remained because he was trained to evacuate buildings.
He stayed while thousands were desperately trying to escape.
There were countless acts like his that morning.
Firefighters climbed stairwells while civilians descended.
Police officers entered buildings others were fleeing.
Office workers helped injured colleagues.
Strangers carried strangers.
Flight 93 passengers fought back against hijackers after learning what was happening elsewhere.
September 11 revealed horrific evil.
But it also revealed extraordinary courage.
That courage—not today’s partisan warfare—is what many families want remembered.
A Quarter-Century Later, September 11 Still Hurts
Twenty-five years sounds like a long time.
For someone who lost a spouse, child, parent or sibling, anniversaries can collapse those years instantly.
The skyline has changed.
Children born after September 11 are now adults.
A generation has grown up with no personal memory of the Twin Towers.
Yet survivors and relatives still carry the consequences.
The terrorist attacks killed 2,977 victims, excluding the 19 hijackers, while many first responders and others exposed to the toxic aftermath have suffered illnesses in the decades since.
September 11 therefore did not end when the fires went out.
Its consequences continue.
And that is why disputes surrounding the memorial ceremony provoke emotions that ordinary political events do not.
Ground Zero Is Different
There are countless places for political debate in America.
Ground Zero on September 11 is different.
The annual ceremony belongs first to the dead and the people who loved them.
Political leaders who attend do so in the shadow of those names.
Whether Mamdani ultimately attends or not, that principle should remain unchanged.
No mayor.
No governor.
No president.
No political movement.
Should become bigger than the people being remembered.
Prophetic Watch: A Generation That Must Not Forget
There is another reason September 11 deserves remembrance.
Scripture repeatedly warns against forgetting.
Deuteronomy 8:11 says:
“Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God.”
Biblical history repeatedly shows generations forgetting what came before them—forgetting deliverance, forgetting judgment, forgetting evil and eventually repeating the mistakes of those who preceded them.
September 11, 2001 should never become merely another chapter in a history textbook.
The attacks demonstrated how quickly ordinary life can change.
One morning, Americans went to work, boarded airplanes, took children to school and began their daily routines.
Hours later, the nation was transformed.
Scripture also warns that the closing stages of history will involve deception, conflict, lawlessness and upheaval.
Jesus warned in Matthew 24:4:
“Take heed that no man deceive you.”
That does not mean every modern political controversy directly fulfills prophecy.
But Christians should understand the importance of remembering truth, recognizing evil and refusing to allow history to be rewritten as generations pass.
There is also a biblical obligation to comfort those who mourn.
Romans 12:15 tells believers to “weep with them that weep.”
September 11 should therefore remain first and foremost a day for remembering the dead, honoring courage, supporting survivors and grieving with families who still carry losses most Americans can scarcely imagine.
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Final Thoughts: September 11 Belongs to the Fallen
The dispute surrounding Mayor Mamdani will continue.
Signatures may continue accumulating.
Political commentators will argue.
Social media will erupt.
But when September 11 arrives, there is something far more important than any politician.
The names.
Grace Catherine Galante.
Robert J. Mayo.
Scott Schertzer.
Michael Iken.
And thousands of others.
Twenty-five years ago, nearly 3,000 innocent people began an ordinary September morning without knowing it would be their last.
Some died at their desks.
Some died trying to escape.
Some died trying to save others.
Some fought terrorists in the sky.
And countless families were left waiting for people who would never return.
Whatever decision is ultimately made about Mamdani’s presence at Ground Zero, the 25th anniversary should not belong to him.
It should not belong to Republicans.
It should not belong to Democrats.
It should not belong to activists.
It belongs to those who were murdered—and to the families who have carried their memory for a quarter of a century.
Never forget.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why do some 9/11 families want Zohran Mamdani excluded from the memorial?
Petition organizers cite Mamdani’s public positions and associations, arguing that his presence would conflict with the solemn purpose of the commemoration. Those are the organizers’ allegations and interpretations, not proof that Mamdani supports terrorism.
2. How many people have signed the petition?
Reporting on July 29 said the petition had surpassed 43,000 signatures, after growing rapidly during the preceding days.
3. Will Mamdani attend the September 11 ceremony?
Mamdani says yes. He has stated that he intends to stand alongside families, survivors and first responders at the 25th-anniversary commemoration.
4. Do all 9/11 survivors and families oppose Mamdani attending?
No. Some survivors and relatives have said they do not object to his presence. The petition represents a significant campaign, but not every person affected by September 11 shares its position.
5. When is the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks?
The 25th anniversary is September 11, 2026, marking a quarter-century since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
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