On the night earlier than he’s sworn into workplace, President-elect Joe Biden plans to guide a solemn memorial service within the nation’s capital to honor the Americans who misplaced their lives to COVID-19.
Nearly 20 million individuals within the U.S. have contracted the coronavirus because the begin of the disaster and greater than 340,000 have died ― grim statistics that replicate a sluggish and haphazard response by the federal authorities beneath outgoing President Donald Trump.
Beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 19, simply after sundown, Biden will host a ceremony across the Lincoln Memorial’s reflecting pool to recollect the useless. The Presidential Inauguration Committee is encouraging native leaders across the nation to hitch at the moment by illuminating buildings and ringing church bells.
Biden’s Jan. 20 inauguration will signify “the beginning of a new national journey,” the committee’s communications director Pili Tobar stated.
“However, in the midst of a pandemic ― when so many Americans are grieving the loss of family, friends, and neighbors ― it is important that we honor those who have died, reflect on what has been one of the more challenging periods in the nation’s history, and renew our commitment to coming together to end the pandemic and rebuild our nation,” Tobar stated.
Because of pandemic security measures, Biden’s inauguration is to be held partly outside, and largely just about.
Trump ordered flags lowered to half-staff on Memorial Day to acknowledge COVID-19 deaths, however Biden’s Lincoln Memorial ceremony would be the first federal tribute of its type to people who’ve misplaced their lives within the pandemic. It seemingly will current a stark distinction with Trump’s dealing with of the well being disaster, which has been criticized for missing empathy.
After his launch from Walter Reed medical heart, the place he was handled for COVID-19 in October, Trump known as on Americans to not permit the virus to “dominate” their lives, prompting households of coronavirus victims to accuse the president of minimizing their pain and loss.
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