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It took only one day, one
inauguration, for the shift between pessimism and optimism. Just one
day to anticipate new opportunities, new possibilities. The skies
opened up on the day that President Joe Biden and Vice-President
Kamala Harris had their inauguration, and the sun of truth and light
shone in.
I
had a mix tape running through my brain. The Fifth Dimension, Let The
Sun Shine In; Nina Simone, Here Comes the Sun; Nina Simone, Young
Gifted and Black; McFadden and Whitehead, Ain’t No Stopping Us
Now. You could not have wiped the grin off my face if you had a
Brillo pad. The inauguration met my expectations. Biden spoke hope
and reconciliation. Harris spoke history and healing. The highlight
of the inauguration for me, though, was young Amanda Gorman, the Poet
Laureate, at 22, the youngest poet laureate ever.
There
have been many times in the last few years when I have wished that
Dr. Maya Angelou was alive. Sometimes it’s personal – I’d
like her advice, her words, her soothing. Sometimes it’s
political – I’d like to know what she thinks. But on
Inauguration Day, I wanted her to see a brilliant young lady stand on
her shoulders, to watch Amanda Gorman recite her poem The Hill We
Climb. It is a complex, hopeful, alliterative, and aspirational poem
that declared that our country “is not broken but unfinished.”
What shone through her appearance was not only her bold words but
also her shining presence. Nina Simone. To Be Young Gifted and Black.
While
the substance of inauguration was most important, those of us who are
fashionistas had plenty of eye candy. Jill Biden’s light blue
outfit. Kamala’s purple (a combination of blue and red),
Michelle Obama’s bold maroon with a striking belt, and the
monochromatic look that many of the women rocked. The presence of
women, especially Black women, was also notable. Minnesota senator,
Amy Klobuchar, was part of the Presidential Inauguration Committee
(PIC) and opened the ceremony. Firefighter Andrea Hall spoke and
signed the Pledge of Allegiance. Black girl magic was in the house.
My mix tape is running through my head.
The
symbolism was stunning, but it was far more critical that President
Biden hit the ground running, and he did. He signed 17 executive
orders, reversing some of the most onerous declarations of his
predecessor. He dissolved the 1776 Commission, an odious
truth-erasing propaganda body charged with developing “patriotic
education.” Replete with lies, peppered with quotes by Dr.
Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln, neither of whom would have
cosigned the report, the previous administration had the utter
audacity to release this madness on Dr. Martin Luther King’s
birthday holiday. One of the final slaps in the face from the
deranged “leader.”
Hours
before Biden offered his stirring and hopeful speech, the previous
president, who defied precedent and declined to attend his
successor’s inauguration, slunk out of Washington, designing
his departure with a 21 gun salute and an exit on Air Force One. It
was a pitiful party, sparsely attended and suffused with gloomy
moods. The former president’s deputy press secretary, Hogan
Gidley, described the departing ceremony as “a funeral”
and said, “In many ways, the country died.” No, Hogan,
the country was reborn with hope and joy, and a commitment to turn
the hope and enjoyment of the inauguration into a reality
What
a difference a day makes. We have gone from a history-denying
administration into a history-affirming one. We have moved from an
administration that attacked workers and the environment to an
administration that fights for them. To be sure, the Biden-Harris
administration is walking a legislatively narrow tightrope, with a
narrow margin in the House of Representatives and just a one-vote
margin in the Senate. Suppose Biden can work the bipartisan magic he
promised to attempt. In that case, there will be more vaccines into
arms and more relief for those whose economic status has been
impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
These
early days of the Biden-Harris administration are hopeful,
inspirational days. They must also be workdays. There is much that
must be done, many obstacles to clear. The previous administration
did lots to cement their gains with last-minute executive orders and
appointments. Many of these obstacles can be removed. The
Biden-Harris team has, so far, been productive and resilient. They
must continue that relentlessness moving forward. What a difference a
day makes! Oh, happy day.
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