the terrorists have won " or " ... then the terrorists win " are rhetorical phrases which were widely used in the United States in the wake of the September 11 attacks . The phrase says " that if we pursue some particular course of action , why then , the terrorists have won " ( as explained by Jeff Greenfield of CNN ) . The expression had been used before 2001 . In 1986 , an article in the Journal of the American Bar Association ( ABA ) reported : In 1995 , an editorial about the response to the Oklahoma City bombing in the '' Ocala Star-Banner '' , of Ocala , Florida concluded : " Our response to terrorism should be carefully measured . If our First Amendment rights suffer as a result of the awful domestic terrorist attack in Oklahoma City the terrorists have indeed , won . " At the same time , an editorial in the '' Victoria Advocate '' of Victoria , Texas said : " If Americans begin to yield their own freedoms at home , the terrorists have won . " In the months after the September 11 attacks , the expression was often used . One of the most famous instances was on November 4 , 2001 by Ellen DeGeneres , who was hosting the Emmy Awards , which had been postponed twice that year for worries that a showy celebration would seem inappropriate in the wake of the attacks . To lighten the mood , she quipped : " We 're told to go on living our lives as usual , because to do otherwise is to let the terrorists win , and really , what would upset the Taliban more than a gay woman wearing a suit in front of a room full of Jews ? "
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
The terrorists have won