Bells ring, honor King's birthday

University and community members gathered yesterday at Old Main to honor the 68th birthday of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Old Main clock tower was not ringing alone at noon yesterday.

The Liberty Bell is energized by the legacy of King, and the ringing of bells is a call out to the insensitivity, injustice and inequality in our world today, said University President Graham Spanier.

Lydia Abdullah, a member of the University's Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Planning Committee, said bell ringing signifies a day of universal peace and nonviolence.

"Our desire is that the sound (of the bells) will resonate in the minds and hearts of those who hear it," Abdullah said.

Bells ring at noon across the nation on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the federal holiday on which his birthday is observed. However, Abdullah said, it is important to ring bells on his actual birthday as well.

The 30-minute ceremony was held not only to honor King's birthday, Abdullah said, but also to embrace his spirit.

James Stewart, vice provost for education equity, said the ringing of bells is important because it acts as a symbolic function for students and education, for both crises and joyous occasions. King believed in a good education, warned people of a racial crisis and spoke of social harmony once racial tensions were overcome, Stewart said.

The search continues for peace and justice in the modern world. Giving service to others and becoming involved is significant in our world today and can aid in the search, Stewart added.

Stewart quoted King, asking, "Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?' "

Spanier added that community and public service bring the world closer to equality and justice for all. Last year, University students performed 256,000 hours of community service, he said.

Our Lady of Victory Bell Choir performed two songs at the ceremony. The Combined Community Choir also performed, and sang, "Let There Be Peace On Earth."

Abdullah said the song was first sung on a mountaintop in 1965 by a group of campers who locked arms and formed a circle. The campers went back to their hometowns and taught the song to others. Since then, Abdullah said the song has spread to all 50 states and around the world. The words of the song include the verse, "Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me."

And just like the song has spread, Abdullah said she is pleased with the way community involvement and service to others has spread at the University.

"Helping others doesn't always have to be so formal," she said. "It could be as simple as baby-sitting for someone. Service to others is a matter of the heart."