Lanterns surrounding the Reflecting Pool next to the Lincoln Memorial shone to represent the dead, and buildings across the nation lit in a united effort to honor those lost. As the sun set with vibrant tangerine hues over a largely desolate, security-conscious downtown, Biden explicitly called on Americans to remember the victims and implicitly signaled the swift changes he would try to bring to the presidency.
Four years after President Trump entered office talking about “American carnage” and insisting that “I alone can fix it,” Biden sought to project an optimism rooted in the possibilities of a country united and working together.
“Between sundown and dusk, let us shine the lights in the darkness,” Biden said in brief remarks that left the images to speak louder than his words. “To heal, we must remember. It’s hard sometimes to remember,but that’s how we heal. It’s important to do that as a nation. That’s why we’re here today.”
image….Doug Mills/NY Times