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Campus Crowds Gather for Inaugural Events
Described in One Word – History
Story and Photos by Yonatan Arnold
A small group gathers in the Ramsey Center for live coverage of the inauguration. |
Crowds gathered around Mars Hill College on Tuesday to watch live coverage of the swearing-in ceremonies for Barack Obama. Along with the world, the campus paused for one moment.
In the cafeteria, a live stream of a TV broadcast was projected onto a free-standing screen. But the cafeteria was not the only place on campus that showed the event. The Media Center fed a broadcast, and the library had the Ramsey Center open so that faculty members who worked there could watch it. Another group gathered in Cornwell, where many faculty members have offices.
In Timberline, a gathering place in Wren Union, about 30 to 40 people watched live coverage from Washington, DC. Students, faculty and staff sat on the couches, in booths and stood and sat on the floor. Those gathered appeared happy and expressed many emotions. It was a time of silence, concentration and respect for the transition.
To recognize the day’s events, people at Mars Hill College gathered just as others did in far-off places such as a village in Kenya, home place of Obama’s father. People gathered in Selma, Alabama, on the islands of Indonesia and in Times Square, New York, where, along with the temperatures, time froze.
News reports indicated that the Washington Mall and the DC area itself absorbed record crowds. About 350,000 people were able to squeeze onto the Washington Mall to witness the administration of the oath. But crowd estimates of those in the city to attend the day’s events were set at about 1.4 million, which made it the biggest inauguration attendance in history since 1965 when Lyndon B. Johnson attracted an estimated 1.2 million people to his ceremonies.
Many faculty members and students at Mars Hill expressed elation. Many felt the vision of Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. had come to pass.
The ceremony opened with a benediction from the Rev. Rick Warren, the pastor of a mega-church in California. His prayer spoke of humility and justice. Once the prayer was given, Aretha Franklin sang “My Country ‘Tis of Thee.” Many people who were in Timberline clapped after her song, as they did on many occasions throughout the ceremonies.
Vice President-elect Joe Biden was sworn in by Supreme Court Justice John Stevens before the presidential oath was given. An original musical piece incorporating the well-known traditional Shaker song “'Tis a Gift to Be Simple” was performed by Itzhak Perlman on violin, Yo-Yo Ma on cello, Gabriela Montero on piano and Anthony McGill on clarinet.
Chief Justice John Roberts performed the swearing in of Obama. There was a mix-up with the words, so it was reported that the oath was later redone Wednesday in a second ceremony that was not broadcast live.
Just as Obama finished his oath, the crowd in Timberline erupted with applause. Many millions of people will likely remember where they were, who they were with, what they stopped doing and what they felt on Jan. 20, 2009.
For audio of President Obama’s inaugural address, check this link to the BBC.
For other official coverage, check the White House official website.
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