Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 175 / Tuesday, September 12, 2023 / Presidential Documents 62443 

Proclamation 10618 of September 7, 2023 

National Days of Prayer and Remembrance, 2023 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

Twenty-two years ago—on September 11, 2001—2,977 precious lives were 

stolen from us in attacks of deliberate evil on our Nation. On the National 

Days of Prayer and Remembrance, we come together to renew our sacred 

vow: Never forget. Never forget the parents, children, spouses, friends, and 

loved ones we lost that day. Never forget the heroes who stepped up to 

rescue their fellow Americans and help our communities rebuild in the 

hours—and years—thereafter. And never forget our obligation to honor their 

memories and service by building a safer and more secure future for all. 

To all the families of the victims who have had to endure the absence 

of a loved one over the last two decades, I know that 22 years is both 

a lifetime and no time at all. The very memories that help us heal can 

also open up the hurt and take us back to the moment the grief was 

raw—to the moment when a loved one and their dreams were stolen from 

us in an instant. Today, when that grief feels especially great, the First 

Lady and I hold you close to our hearts. 

We also join all those who are mourning the loss of patriots who stepped 

up when their country needed them most. My mom believed the greatest 

virtue of all was courage and that someday the bravery that exists in every 

heart will be summoned. For many, that day was September 11, 2001. 

Patriotic citizens and first responders ran into the searing flames and crumbling buildings to save their fellow Americans. And in the years that followed, 

thousands more served and sacrificed to prevent another attack on the 

United States. 

These brave heroes remind us that—through all that has changed over these 

last two decades—the enduring resolve of the American people has never 

wavered. What was destroyed in the attacks, we have repaired. What was 

threatened, we have fortified. We have never ceased in our mission to 

defend ourselves against those who seek to do us harm and to deliver 

justice to those responsible for attacks against our people. And during our 

darkest hour, we regained our light by finding something all too rare— 

unity. 

Today, the charge left for all of us is to find renewal and resolve in remembrance. For it is not enough to only reflect on the souls we lost on September 

11th; we must also continue to build a Nation worthy of their highest 

aspirations—one that remembers, for all our flaws and disagreements, there 

is nothing we cannot accomplish when we stand together and defend with 

all our hearts that which makes us unique in the world: our democracy. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States 

of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 

and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 8, 2023, 

through September 10, 2023, as National Days of Prayer and Remembrance. 

I ask that the people of the United States honor the victims of September 

11, 2001, and their loved ones with prayer, contemplation, memorial services 

and visits, bells, candlelight vigils, and other activities. I invite people 

around the world to join. I call on the citizens of our Nation to give 

thanks for our many freedoms and blessings, and I invite all people of 


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62444 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 175 / Tuesday, September 12, 2023 / Presidential Documents 

faith to join me in asking for God’s continued guidance, mercy, and protection. 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this seventh day 

of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-three, and 

of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred 

and forty-eighth. 

[FR Doc. 2023–19799 

Filed 9–11–23; 8:45 am] 

Billing code 3395–F3–P 


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