On Wednesday, we witnessed history in the making. Whatever your political opinions are, the one thing that we can all agree on is that Joe Biden will face monumental challenges in his presidency, from dealing with Covid to ensuring racial equality. I spoke with 4 history teachers to get their opinions about what Biden’s address means for the next 4 years.
The inaugural address serves as an introduction to the presidency, the first time we hear a president speak. And Mr. Auger elaborated on the importance of inaugurations. Inaugurations lay “out a vision for the new administration and provides us as citizens with an understanding of which policies will be priorities for the executive branch.” In other words, they’re a pretty big deal.
Mr. Abarr mentioned that one of the major issues Biden touched upon was unifying the country. While it is typical for a president to mention serving both Americans who voted for him and those who didn’t, Biden faced a particularly tough challenge with the recent insurrection. It was an attack on the Capitol, but it was also an attack on our democracy.
Mr Abarr emphasized that “despite all of this, I was incredibly proud that just two weeks later on January 20, we did have a peaceful transition of power” and that he “sincerely hopes we are able to refocus as a nation and draw on the things that unite us rather than divide us.”
Mr. Gotsell also spoke on the importance of unity in Biden’s speech. “With the growing divisiveness in our country, we need a leader who is willing to remind us there is more that unites us than divides us.”
The second main theme of Biden’s speech was addressing truth, especially in the media. I think that all Americans are aware of a growing distrust in the news. The truth, nowadays, is malleable, a suggestion rather than a fact. Mr. Gotsell specifically mentioned the importance of “educating ourselves on media literacy and bias. We must engage in healthy discussions and debates based on facts and logic, and not who’s the loudest.”
But even though the main event was the new president, there were plenty of other things to see on Wednesday. Standout poet Amanda Gorman wowed the audiences at only 22 years old with her words on racism and unity. And how could I not mention the extravagant fashion and standout performances of Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez? Mr. Sunderland spoke on how these performances enhanced the message of the inauguration as a whole. Despite the “limitations created by the pandemic the inaugurations was one of the best I have witnessed. The message of unity, civility, and truth permeated the entire ceremony,” seen in both Biden’s speech and the other performances.
I’ll leave you with a quote from Abraham Lincoln, on his very own inaugural address in 1861. And even though it is 160 years later, his words still ring true. “The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.”
And Mr. Abarr sums it all up in just a few words.
“I am truly hopeful our better angels will prevail now.”