00:00And now it's my pleasure to introduce the Mayor of the City of New York, the Honorable Zohran Mamdani.
00:14Good morning.
00:17It is my deep privilege to join you today at One Police Plaza.
00:21And it is an immense honor to stand alongside the men and women of the NYPD, the loved ones and
00:29families of all who were killed in the horrific terror attacks 25 years ago, and in the months and years
00:36that followed.
00:38I want to acknowledge Police Commissioner Tisch and NYPD leadership for their stewardship of this department and for everything they
00:44do to support our officers.
00:46I also want to acknowledge the powerful faith leaders that are here with us today, NYPD Co-Chief Chaplains Reverend
00:53A.R. Bernard and His Eminence Cardinal Timothy Dolan.
00:56Our partners as well in law enforcement from the FBI, DOJ, State Police, as well as the union leaders that
01:02are here with us today, as well as our First Deputy Mayor, Dean Flehan, and our Deputy Mayor for Housing
01:06and Planning, Layla Bozark.
01:08On the morning of September 11, 2001, Officer John William Perry arrived here at One Police Plaza.
01:18Unlike his fellow officers who were pouring themselves a cup of coffee and preparing for the day ahead, Officer Perry
01:23was here for something else entirely.
01:25He was here to resign, to begin a new career as an attorney.
01:30He was in the midst of filing the paperwork when the first plane hit the North Tower.
01:36Without hesitation, he asked for his shield back and rushed to the scene.
01:41There he was confronted with unimaginable suffering, but he did not stop.
01:46With the same immense bravery and courage that was commonplace among so many that day, the kind that has long
01:53defined this department, Officer Perry ran into the fire.
01:56The last time he was seen, he was helping a woman out of the South Tower before rushing back in
02:03to save as many others as he could.
02:06Officer Perry and 22 of his fellow officers, each with their own stories, were killed that morning.
02:13That includes 14 members of the Emergency Service Unit who were among the first to enter the towers.
02:18I had the great honor of visiting ESU Truck No. 2 yesterday, the same one that 2nd Grade Detective Joseph
02:25Vigiano served with.
02:26On September 11th, Detective Vigiano acted with extraordinary valor, and it was not the first time.
02:33He, like so many others, did only what they had done many times before, placed themselves in unthinkable danger to
02:41protect others.
02:42His two sons now carry on his legacy of bravery as valued members of this very department.
02:47Every officer present that day embodied the NYPD's creed that the duty to protect is not a job that one
02:54clocks out of, but a calling one answers until the very end.
02:58In the days and months that followed September 11th, thousands of NYPD officers and staff from across every precinct and
03:06every borough heeded that same call.
03:08They took on that same heavy and incalculable risk.
03:12Day after day, night after night, they searched the pile to recover the bodies of their fallen comrades and the
03:18thousands of civilians killed.
03:20When that work had finished, they stayed until the rubble and debris had been clear, all the while continuing to
03:27fulfill their duty to serve and protect our city.
03:30I know many of you who worked on the pile are here today.
03:34I also know that far too many are not.
03:36Over the last 25 years, we have lost more than 450 officers to 9-11 related illnesses.
03:43They were fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers, and they were New Yorkers through and through.
03:48In everything they gave to their loved ones, their neighbors, their communities, and the pride they held for this city,
03:55and in the sacrifice they made without hesitation.
03:59When we say never forget, it is not an empty platitude.
04:03It is an obligation to honor all that was given by the men and women of the NYPD and their
04:07fellow first responders,
04:09by tending to those who are sick, and by building a city worthy of their sacrifice.
04:14Last week, Officer Perry was honored with a street named after him in East Harlem.
04:19Today, we honor every NYPD officer who died on or after 9-11, those who gave so much to protect
04:25and to serve.
04:27In the words of ESU Detective Mike Hansen, who before he passed gave his younger officers a rule to work
04:33by,
04:34do what you can for who you can with whatever it takes.
04:38The men and women of the NYPD did what they could for who they could with whatever it took 25
04:44years ago.
04:45And this department continues to.
04:47We will forever be grateful.
04:50Thank you.
04:50Thank you very much.
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04:53Thank you very much.
04:55Thank you very much.
04:56Gracias.
