Dear readers,
when the Freedom Bell rang for the first time in the tower of Schöneberg Town Hall on October 24, 1950, almost half a million Berliners stood packed tightly together in front of the town hall to hear the sound of freedom. To this day, the bell remains one of the most important symbols of peace, freedom, and democracy. Three values that are inextricably linked.
Together with the bell, the tower of Schöneberg Town Hall stores the Freedom Rolls, with which 16 million Americans manifested their belief in the freedom and dignity of every human being.
Their signatures and their donations for the bell and for the creation of the radio station Radio Free Europe remain an important testimony to solidarity in times of hardship. Many people from the USA have visited us at Schöneberg Town Hall over the past decades. They told us that they donated to the Freedom Bell because they were impressed by the “attitude of Berliners in the fight for freedom during the airlift and hoped for a changed, democratic Germany.”
This was after Nazi Germany had brought death to millions of people and incurred infinite guilt with the Second World War and the Holocaust.
German post-war history has shown where political division and the creation of walls can lead. We are currently losing much of what we have achieved, even in previously stable democracies. As enlightened citizens, we must not allow this to happen, but must stand up for human rights, peace, and freedom worldwide, as well as on our own doorsteps. This includes freedom of expression as well as freedom of the press. With the knowledge we have today, we must not allow ourselves to be taken in by lies again. Many prominent figures stand for today‘s knowledge. In a highly symbolic gesture, astronaut Rabea Rogge, who was born in Schöneberg, took a miniature version of the Freedom Bell with her into space. She is the first German woman in space and has made it clear that human freedom is universal.
The wording of the oath of freedom, reflected in history and many current events, must shake us up politically. It is and remains our duty to stand up for the dignity of every single human being. The bell and its oath of freedom and peace still hold true after 75 years—let us celebrate them!
Yours sincerely
Jörn Oltmann
District Mayor of Tempelhof-Schöneberg
