Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration events to include memorial ceremony for coronavirus victims
- Many of the inauguration’s traditional ceremonies will be eliminated or ‘reimagined’ considering the pandemic
- The ceremony will also include lit-up building and church bells ringing across Washington
President-elect Joe Biden is planning to include a lighting ceremony commemorating the Americans lost to Covid-19 as part of the events for his inauguration.
The vigil will be held the day before his inauguration at 5.30pm at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, according to the transition team.
“The inauguration of president-elect Joe Biden and vice-president-elect Kamala Harris represents the beginning of a new national journey,” said Pili Tobar, the communications director for the Presidential Inaugural Committee, in a statement.
“However, in the midst of a pandemic – when so many Americans are grieving the loss of family, friends and neighbours – it is important that we honour 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.”
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Many of the inauguration’s traditional ceremonies will be eliminated or “reimagined” considering the pandemic. The lighting ceremony will be one of the few in-person additions to the programming. Most inaugural activities are expected to take place virtually.
The ceremony will also include building lightings and church bells ringing across Washington, and the committee has called on Americans across the country to join in as part of “a national moment of unity and remembrance”.
