Talat Hamdani, a Pakistan-born American citizen, lost her son, Mohammad Salman Hamdani, 23, in the aftermath of the attacks at the World Trade Center. He had raced to the site to help the injured.

He wasn't alone. Some 60 Muslims were killed in the 9/11 attacks. Their family members felt the same crushing uncertainty as other grieving families as they waited for days and months to find out if their loved ones were alive or dead — and the consequent heartache and despair after finding out it was the latter.

But these grieving Muslim families are often overlooked, Hamdani said.

“We aren’t counted. We are an invisible people. People are always saying ‘Muslim terrorists.’ But we died too. Our people died too.”

As she has every year since 2002, Hamdani will spend Sept. 11 with her other two sons, grieving for Salman in the country they call home, even if – due to what she describes as rising Islamophobia – it doesn’t often feel that way.

“It’s a hard day. We don’t do anything,” the 64-year-old retired school teacher said. “We just stay together and we shut down. We do not turn on the television, we cut off from the world and stay in our own little world. We might go for a drive, but we don’t address the day itself. What can you possibly say?”

Even today, Hamdani, who lives in Lake Grove, New York, is fighting for her son’s recognition as an NYPD cadet. Salman – who was initially wrongly suspected of being involved with the attacks – said ongoing discrimination against Muslims is a primary factor in why he isn’t being recognized. “The Muslim community is under siege,” she said.

Here's how the three sites of the attack — New York, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pennsylvania — and others will remember the fallen. For memorials around the world, go here.

Sept. 11

"Tribute in Light" (New York)

The Municipal Art Society of New York presented this public art tribute for 10 years. Today, the twin beams of blue light emanating from Ground Zero are under the direction of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. The 88 7,000-watt xenon light bulbs, arranged and positioned to recall the Twin Towers, will shine from dusk to dawn the next day. They're visible from a 60-mile radius, and reach 4 miles into the sky.

National Day of Service and Remembrance (Anywhere)

Visit 911day.org for opportunities in your community.

Sept. 12

"Rendering the Unthinkable" Exhibit (New York)

The 9/11 Memorial opens an exhibit of artistic reactions to the deadly attacks, collecting the work of 13 artists. For more information, go here.