President Franklin D. Roosevelt said Dec. 7 would "live in infamy."
It's been 77 years since Japanese forces attacked a U.S. military base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.
After the attack, which left more than 2,400 Americans dead, President Franklin D. Roosevelt said Dec. 7 would "live in infamy." The date is now National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.
Every year, veterans, families and service members gather to remember the 1941 attack and pay tribute to its victims. This year, about 20 survivors will gather at Pearl Harbor for a ceremony overlooking the water. The youngest veteran is in his mid-90s, The Associated Press reported.
The attack prompted Roosevelt to give one of the most important speeches any president has had to give.
"Yesterday, December 7th, 1941, a date which will live in infamy," he said. "I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on Sunday, December 7th, 1941, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese empire."
With that, the United States entered World War II.
Watch the video above to see a newsreel from 1942, which tells the story of the attacks.
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