President Obama Urged Americans To Honor 9/11 Victims By Embracing Diversity

On the eve of the 15th anniversary of the terror attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives on September 11, 2001, President Obama praised Americans for their resilience.

The president urged Americans to uphold their fundamental values and to reject divisive forces that seek to drive them apart.

He stated,

In the face of terrorism, how we respond matters. We cannot give in to those who would divide us. We cannot react in ways that erode the fabric of our society. Because it's our diversity, our welcoming of all talent, our treating of everybody fairly—no matter their race, gender, ethnicity, or faith—that's part of what makes our country great. It's what makes us resilient. And if we stay true to those values, we'll uphold the legacy of those we've lost, and keep our nation strong and free.

The president also highlighted the ways in which Americans responded to 9/11 revealed their best qualities.

He said,

As we reflect on these past 15 years, it's also important to remember what has not changed—the core values that define us as Americans. The resilience that sustains us. After all, terrorists will never be able to defeat the United States. Their only hope is to terrorize us into changing who we are or our way of life. That's why we Americans will never give in to fear. And it's why this weekend we remember the true spirit of 9/11. We're still the America of heroes who ran into harm's way; of ordinary folks who took down the hijackers; of families who turned their pain into hope. We are still the America that looks out for one another, bound by our shared belief that I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper.

ABC News reports President Obama will commemorate the 9/11 anniversary by observing a moment of silence in the White House at 8:46 am, which is the moment when American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into The North Tower of the World Trade Center.

Subsequently, he'll deliver remarks at a Pentagon memorial service.