The Guardian newspaper has celebrated the official inauguration of US Vice President Kamala Harris, the country’s first woman, first African American, and first Asian American vice president.
With a full-page advertisement in its daily paper, created by agency Uncommon as part of The Guardian’s ongoing ‘Hope is Power’ campaign that began in 2019, the UK-based outlet backed the importance of the moment in five lines.
Set amid a yellow spread and above a shot of Harris, The Guardian writes:
1920 – An American woman can vote.
1952 – An Asian American woman can vote.
1965 – A Black American woman can vote.
2021 – A Black, Asian American woman can win.
Hope is Power.
Change is possible. Hope is power. https://t.co/tgtWmbkel5
— Uncommon (@uncommon_studio) January 20, 2021
It comes as both Harris and Joe Biden were sworn in to office, with Biden becoming the 46th President of the United States and vowing to end the “uncivil war” in a deeply divided country.
Led by Chief Justice John Roberts, Biden gave the oath of office on a Bible that has been in his family for 127 years just before midday Wednesday (local time) at Washington DC’s Capitol building.
“This is America’s day,” Biden, 78, said at the beginning of his inaugural address.
“This is democracy’s day. A day of history and hope, of renewal and resolve.”
Harris made history shortly before Biden was sworn into office, with Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the first Latina justice, doing the honours.
In attendance at the ceremony, ABC News reports, were former US presidents George W Bush, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, along with outgoing vice president Mike Pence.
Outgoing president Donald Trump did not attend the inauguration ceremony, breaking with over 150 years of tradition.
“We move to what shall be”: Amanda Gorman’s vision of hope
The day was also historic as Amanda Gorman became the youngest poet in US history to mark the transition of presidential power, offering a hopeful vision for America with her poem, The Hill We Climb, at the ceremony.
Gorman is 22-years-old and a Los Angeles resident, who, at the age of 16, was named the Youth Poet Laureate of LA. In 2017, she was named the first US National Youth Poet Laureate.
“Being American is more than a pride we inherit. It’s the past we step into and how we repair it,” Gorman said.
“We will not march back to what was. We move to what shall be, a country that is bruised, but whole. Benevolent, but bold. Fierce and free.”
Amanda Gorman, the first-ever National Youth Poet Laureate, became the youngest-ever inaugural poet. As a person with a speech impediment, she's said she can relate to Pres. Biden and his refusal to be silenced by his stutter pic.twitter.com/GqqdEn27q1
— NowThis Impact (@nowthisimpact) January 20, 2021
Featured image source: Twitter/Uncommon