The Victims of Terrorism: An Assessment of Their Influence and Growing Role in Policy, Legislation, and the Private Sector

Organized groups of victims’ families and friends have emerged since September 11, 2001, to become a powerful voice in U.S. counterterrorist policy and legislation. These groups were remarkably successful in getting the 9/11 Commission established and in getting the commission’s most important recommendations enacted. This report documents these groups and compares them to groups formed in response to other terrorist attacks.