Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo
Christine Alverno and her daughter Julia Crump, of Troy, Michigan, try to get a glimpse of President-elect Joe Biden as he leaves an early-morning church service, January 20, 2021, in Washington.
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris took the oath of office in a quiet and mostly deserted capital. The largest crowds were members of the press, including international correspondents, covering the historic moment from the outside of the barricaded National Mall, as a new security perimeter was established to frustrate any attempts to stop the transfer of power. In the wake of the January 6 insurrection, the city’s hopefully temporary fortifications mimicked those of other cities after violent attacks.
During the weekend leading up to Inauguration Day, when normally tourists would arrive and preparations for inaugural balls and other celebrations would be in full force, the city was eerily still. Planned pro-Trump rallies did not materialize in D.C. or at other statehouses around the country; a protest at the state Capitol in Albany, New York, featured one Trump supporter. And counterprotests scheduled for today—to be held in designated “free-speech zones”—were canceled.
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But while the few Biden supporters who did travel to D.C. for the swearing-in couldn’t see the proceedings, they were hopeful and excited.
“We have seen movements. We have seen hate. We have seen progress. We have seen regression,” says Henrieta Moore. She and her husband traveled from Atlanta, Georgia, to celebrate “progress and hope.” Both voted in the January 5 runoff elections that gave the Democratic Party control of the Senate, with now–Vice President Harris as the upper chamber’s deciding vote.
“We changed the world,” Moore says of Georgia’s election. Now she and her husband hope to see racial and economic inequality addressed by the new occupants of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. “I’m the same age as those four little black girls from Birmingham …” adds Moore, who is also African American. “So [in the next administration] I expect to see hope and love. I want to see kindness.”
In addition to Moore’s expectations, the Biden administration has a plethora of imminent agenda items, from dealing with the coronavirus and its economic impact to addressing the climate crisis and concentrated corporate power. But Biden has also put racial equity at the top of his priority list.
For 2016 Howard University graduate Deltrice Boyd, student debt cancellation is her top priority. Boyd, 34, flew from San Francisco for the historic event and “popped three bottles of champagne” before the speeches had even started. “Biden needs to get on that $50,000 of student loan debt or there’s going to be a problem,” she said in jest, referring to a proposal from Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Chuck Schumer.
Tight security prevented the public from getting close to the Capitol. Thousands of flags were planted in the grass on the National Mall, to represent Americans who could not attend the ceremony. Busy downtown streets in D.C. were shut down, with Mack trucks blocking entry. Security checkpoints for pedestrians and cars slowed or halted traffic into the secure perimeter around the Capitol. Trained dogs sniffed for hazards.
Close to 25,000 National Guard troops were stationed in the capital, with hundreds of additional security staff from the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the D.C. Metropolitan Police, the Secret Service, Capitol Police, and even New York City police. Buses were rerouted, Metro stations closed, and bridges blocked, too. Cars coming into the city have been searched for the last few days.
Nevertheless, residential neighborhoods are mostly quiet. Airbnb canceled most rentals in D.C. for last weekend, ensuring fewer visitors. However, National Guard troops have been stationed at Meridian Hill Park, several miles north of the Capitol in the Columbia Heights neighborhood.
Despite the security, some D.C. residents were determined to come out and celebrate, even though little could be seen. On the eastern side of the Capitol, a small crowd of mostly press gathered during Biden’s speech, listening on the radio with just the Capitol dome in view. Jennifer, who asked that only her first name be used, said she has lived in Washington for 24 years. When asked why she decided to come out today, she said, “It’s my right to come here.” But she added, “I’m sad we can’t be closer and I’m sad the one who left can’t be a leader.” She said she’s most looking forward to Biden’s leadership. “Just calming, normal leadership not by Twitter. Just calm. I mean, he’s for everyone. I know some people dislike him, but he’s not going to incite a fucking—sorry—riot.”
Seven members of the Arizona Dream Act Coalition, based in Phoenix, flew to D.C. to “send a message,” said group member Michael Browder. “A lot of us in the organization are DACA recipients, have children that are DACA, a lot are DACA moms,” Browder said. “We want immigration reform now. We’ve waited eight years since [Barack] Obama [when] he said there was going to be some kind of immigration reform for DACA recipients and it hasn’t happened yet. We’re hopeful that Biden does something now because a lot of us would like to vote hopefully in the next election, in 2024.”
Biden did send an immigration bill to Congress on his first day in office. He also signed a number of executive orders affecting immigrants, including pausing border wall construction and ending the travel ban from several majority-Muslim countries, reversing Trump orders that excluded undocumented people from the census count and directed harsh interior enforcement, and extending Deferred Enforced Departure for Liberian immigrants.
Howard University students and alumni also spoke with the Prospect. Kamala Harris, the nation’s first woman, African American, and Indian American vice president, is an alum of the historically Black university. Two current Howard students, both sporting Howard sweatshirts, and one Howard alum were working as security for NBC News near the Capitol. Majoring in communications and film and hailing from Texas, Ohio, and New York, the three said they feel very proud. “I feel like our tuition just went up,” said Enot, a junior. The three also attended the March on Washington last August. “It’s very important to be here in the space,” said Cody of Ohio, a 2019 Howard alum. “I have a lot of relatives, a lot of people who won’t be here, who can’t be here. We’re out here because we’re getting paid but we’re also standing in the gap, representing Howard, for those who can’t be here.”
Howard’s bell tolled 49 times as Harris was sworn in as the nation’s 49th vice president. “If we weren’t virtual right now, I guarantee you … it would be crazy right now,” they said. The students added that they hope the Biden administration will lower racial tensions they said Trump fueled. “America was founded on diversity. A bunch of people can come from all over the world and build a nation together.”
