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Vol. 32, Issue 4 QUEENS/LONG ISLAND/BRONX/MANHATTAN January 22-28, 2021
HISTORIC INAUGURATION
By Nelson A. King
Proclaiming that they were
overcome with joy, Caribbean
American legislators in Brooklyn
on Wednesday hailed the
historic inauguration of Joe
Biden and Caribbean American
Kamala Harris as president and
vice president, respectively, of
the United States.
“From impeachment, to
insurrection, to a historic day of
inauguration, the last Administration
has been nothing short
of a tumultuous undertaking
that has provoked division in
ways America has never known,”
Caribbean American Congresswoman
Yvette D. Clarke, the
daughter of Jamaican immigrants,
told Caribbean Life after
Biden and Harris’s inauguration
on the grounds of the Capitol in
Washington, D.C.
“Our constitution’s safeguards
have held firm and supported
the peaceful transition of
power from one administration
to the next,” added Clarke, who
represents the predominantly
Caribbean 9th Congressional
District in Brooklyn. “Indeed,
there is no tradition more crucial
to our nation than this. The
Biden-Harris administration historically
included the first Black
Caribbean-Indian American
woman, Vice President Kamala
Devi Harris. As a woman of
Caribbean descent, the historic
nature of this accomplishment
cannot be understated.
“This morning, being among
the socially-distanced masses
watching history being made,
I was overcome with joy,” continued
Clarke, a senior member
of the US House of Representatives’
House Committees on
Homeland Security, and Energy
and Commerce, co-chair of the
Smart Cities Caucus, and cochair
of the Multicultural Media
Caucus, “My colleagues and I
were filled with the optimism of
building towards a united future
and the possibility of continuing
to legislate on behalf of not only
our constituents but the American
public as a whole and our
global contributions.
“For many people of color,
immigrants, and other minority
communities, these past four
years have been difficult,” she
said. “But today is not a day to
dwell on the past. Today, we look
forward with hope for this great
nation and rejoice that the will
of the people has prevailed.”
Clarke’s House colleague,
Congressman Hakeem Jeffries
– who represents a significant
number of Caribbean nationals
in New York’s 8th Congressional
district, which includes parts
of Brooklyn and Queens – said
Biden and Harris’s inauguration
represents “a beacon of hope.
“It is a signal to every American,
as well as (to) our allies
abroad, that brighter days are
ahead in the United States of
America,” said Jeffries, chairman
of the US House of Representatives’
Democratic Caucus.
“In a time marked by chaos,
crisis, confusion and corruption,
President Joe Biden and
his partner in the White House,
Vice President Kamala Harris,
will restore the values that we
hold sacred as Americans.
“President Biden is going to
bring confidence. He is going to
bring integrity. He is going to
bring leadership. He is going to
bring unity to the Oval Office,
because we don’t have Democratic
problems or Republican
problems. We don’t have progressive
problems, moderate
problems, centrist problems or
conservative problems. We have
American problems, and President
Biden is committed to solving
them,” he added.
Jeffries said House Democrats
are “excited and looking
forward to continuing our work
with President Biden and Vice
President Harris to ‘Build Back
Better for The People’ and make
life better for everyday Americans.
U.S. President Joe Biden gestures after speaking during the 59th Presidential Inauguration
at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 20, 2021. At left is Vice President Kamala
Harris. Kevin Dietsch/Pool via REUTERS
“Together, we will crush the
virus, provide direct relief to
everyday Americans who are
struggling and supercharge
our economy. so that we can
create prosperity in every single
zip code,” he said. “That’s
what the American people want.
That’s what they deserve, and
that’s what the House Democratic
Caucus is going to work
to achieve.”
Veteran New York State
Assemblyman Jamaican Nick
Perry said that “today, all Americans
can once again take pride
in the fact that they reside in
the greatest democracy in the
world, with leaders at the helm
who will not bring shame upon
us.
“Reasonable Americans have
reclaimed our nation and have a
president who will serve a power
greater than himself,” said Perry,
who represents the 58th Assembly
District in Brooklyn.
“As a Caribbean-American,
the day is even sweeter,
as we witnessed history with
Vice President Kamala Harris’
swearing-in,” he added. “I am
sure most genuine, real Americans
will join me in shouting
loudly from our rooftops, ‘Oh,
Happy Day.’”
Given the events of the past
four years and the past two
weeks in particular, New York
City Public Advocate Jumaane
Williams told Caribbean Life
that “we cannot underestimate
or overstate the importance of
our institutions holding well
enough to remove a tyrant
(referring to outgoing President
Donald J. Trump).
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