Joe Biden became the 46th president of the United States on Wednesday, January 20, 2021. His inauguration marks the first socially distanced Presidential Inauguration the U.S. has ever seen, with only one thousand attendees. Former President Donald Trump did not attend the ceremony, making him the first president to not attend his successor’s inauguration since Andrew Jackson. The event saw Lady Gaga performing the national anthem, as well as Amanda Gorman reading her poem, The Hill We Climb.

“To me, Biden’s inauguration was a celebration of a new America, an America that will live up to her own standards in which we’ve failed in the past. Inauguration day restored hope in millions of Americans who had lost it during the previous presidency. Most importantly, the inauguration showed the American people that they have the power to elect progressive and diverse leaders who have all American people’s best interests in mind,” said junior Joseph Ranstead.

President Biden’s inaugural address lasted for 20 minutes, during which he called for unity amongst the countries’ parties and its citizens and touched on the recent issues regarding civil rights within our country. He also made several statements regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, divide between our political parties, and how he intends to serve all citizens, even those who did not support him.

“A cry for racial justice some 400 years in the making moves us. The dream of justice for all will be differed no longer,” President Biden said.

President Biden spent his first day in office attempting to tackle pressing issues involving COVID-19, its vaccine, and the rapidly growing unemployment rate. From the moment President Biden took office, he began signing executive orders to uphold promises made during his campaign. As of Thursday evening President Biden has already passed 15 executive orders regarding federal minimum wage, mandatory masks on airlines and public transportation, climate change and more. 

“I’m really glad Biden has been taking a lot of action already. It makes me a bit sad that mandating masks to prevent massive death tolls and try not to kill the environment are things that have been disagreed on so much that they aren’t seen as the bare minimum, though. I’m hopeful things will continue to look up,” junior Amelia Orr said.

As President Biden continues to take action in the White House, the world watches while he attempts to uphold his promises to the American people involving his stances on the virus and racial injustice. He also must deal with the great divide left behind from Trump’s presidency. Citizens can expect President Biden to begin tackling issues with America’s immigration policy and the COVID-19 vaccine rollout in the near future.