Symbolic “Peace Pole” monument erected at Upper Arlington High School.
BY SAFIA MALHOTRA, ’24, PHOTOS BY LILLY RAIMI, ’24.
At 5:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, a monumental “Peace Pole” was erected in the Lisa Ingram and Greg Guy East Courtyard of Upper Arlington High School in a symbolic peace pole dedication ceremony. A second Peace Pole was instituted at the City of Upper Arlington Municipal Services Center following the ceremony at the high school.
The Upper Arlington Peace Poles were funded and organized by the Tri-Village Rotary Club, a local branch of the global organization Rotary International.
“Today, as we remember September 11, we commend the remarkable efforts toward promoting peace with two poles right here in Upper Arlington,” Tri-Village Rotary Club district governor David Uhl said.
The intention of these monuments was also to commemorate the 22nd anniversary of September 11, 2001, during which the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers collapsed in the deadliest terror attack on U.S. soil.
“On this somber anniversary, let us celebrate this beautiful gift of the Peace Pole, and our shared goal of peaceful bright futures for generations to come,” Upper Arlington Board of Education president Lori Trent said.
The Peace Pole Project is a global movement dedicated to international peace and unity, which is accomplished by the planting of a series of “Peace Poles.” The organization describes these Poles as “an internationally-recognized symbol of the hopes and dreams of the entire human family, standing vigil in silent prayer for peace on earth.” Each Peace Pole bears the message “May Peace Prevail on Earth” in different languages on each of its four or six sides.
The first peace pole was planted in 1976 in Ishikawa, Japan, and the movement quickly gained international recognition. Seven years later, The World Peace Prayer and Flag Ceremony was created as a “global celebration of the oneness of humanity.”
Now, the newly titled organization “May Peace Prevail on Earth International” is a nationally recognized Non-Governmental Organization in affiliation with the United Nations.
“We are proud to become one of the more than 250,000 locations around the world to have a peace pole, this one bearing the phrase “may peace prevail on Earth” in the languages most commonly spoken by our students: English, Arabic, Spanish, Korean, and Chinese,” superintendent Robert Hunt said.
Alongside the phrase “may peace prevail on Earth” written on the sides of the Peace Pole in various languages, the Pole also reads “may peace be in our schools” and “may peace be in our hearts” in English.
“Let there be peace on Earth. And let it begin with me, let it begin with you, let it begin with us today,” Uhl said.