MLK Jr.'s children pray for peace near ground zero to mark anniversary of his death

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - Standing in front of a sculpture recovered from the World Trade Center, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.&#39;s son and daughter prayed for world peace Sunday to mark the anniversary of their father&#39;s assassination. <br> <br> ``If we had taken heed to so much of what he was trying to tell us to do, there is no doubt in my mind that what happened on Sept. 11 would not have occurred,&#39;&#39; said Yolanda King, 46, the oldest of the slain civil rights leader&#39;s four children. <br> <br> The Rev. Al Sharpton, flanked by Yolanda King and Martin Luther King III, led a prayer for peace in Battery Park, just blocks from ground zero. They sang ``We Shall Overcome&#39;&#39; in front of ``The Sphere,&#39;&#39; a steel and bronze sculpture that once sat atop a fountain at the center of the trade center plaza. <br> <br> Created in 1971, ``The Sphere&#39;&#39; was originally dedicated as a monument to world peace through trade. Beaten and battered by the collapse of the 110-story twin towers, it now serves as a memorial to those who died in the Sept. 11 attack. <br> <br> King was assassinated on April 4, 1968. To recognize the 34th anniversary of her father&#39;s death, Yolanda King told the crowd of several dozen people that his message of peace and nonviolence is needed ``now more than ever.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> ``He reminded us on so many instances how important it is to learn to live together as brothers and sisters or we would perish together as fools,&#39;&#39; she said. <br> <br> Her brother said it is important for the world to remember Sept. 11. <br> <br> ``The destiny of our nation and our world is tied to what happened in this city and what happened at our nation&#39;s capital and what happened on a Pennsylvania field that day,&#39;&#39; he said. <br> <br> Daniel Jones, who lost his brother-in-law in the attack, was invited by Sharpton&#39;s National Action Network to speak at the gathering. He recalled Dr. King&#39;s speech ``I&#39;ve Been to the Mountaintop,&#39;&#39; which he delivered in Memphis, Tenn., the night before he was assassinated. <br> <br> ``As Martin Luther King Jr. said the night before he died, that he&#39;d seen the mountaintop, I&#39;d like to believe also that my brother-in-law and the others who died that day saw the mountaintop,&#39;&#39; Jones said.