Latinos make mark at Biden’s inauguration
When Kamala Harris placed her hand on a Bible on Wednesday, making history as the nation’s first female, Caribbean, South Asian, and African-American vice president, it was Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the first Latina Supreme Court justice, who administered the oath of office.
Soon after, Boricua pop star Jennifer Lopez took the stage, crooning, “This land is your land, this land is our land,” in a pearl-studded outfit that matched her earpiece.
Toward the end of the song, Lopez surprised the audience with a shout out in Spanish for justice.
“Una nación, bajo Dios, indivisible, con libertad y justicia para todos!,” she cried, her voice cracking with emotion.
One nation, under God, indivisible, with freedom and justice for all.
The presence of prominent Latinos at the inauguration was a moment of pride and reflection for many hailing from the Americas. Long excluded from the halls of power, some saw their moment in the spotlight as a symbolic step forward.
“It’s really a reflection of what the nation is,” said Federico de Jesús, a political analyst and former deputy director for the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration. “I think having those two prominent Puerto Rican women sent the appropriate signal of inclusion of this country.”
The star-studded event comes at a tumultuous time for many Latinos. The pandemic has devastated the Hispanic community and put into sharp relief long-existing inequalities. The outgoing Trump administration pursued hardline immigration policies that kept many families separated.
Latino legislators who attended said they hope Wednesday marks a turning point.
“Now, we are going to have an administration that truly reflects the diversity of our country. When I got elected in 1993, it was just me and José Serrano,” said Rep. Nydia Velázquez, the first Puerto Rican woman to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives. “Today, we have five members of Congress of Puerto Rican descent.”
Jenniffer González, a Republican who is Puerto Rico’s sole representation in Congress, called Harris’ swearing in, “a gigantic advance for women in the United States and certainly Latinas as well.”
But while the inauguration was a momentous occasion for many Latinos, for some it shone a light on lingering contradictions.
Hundreds of National Guardsmen traveled from Puerto Rico to help provide security at the event. And Harris wore a pearl and gold necklace crafted by Puerto Rican designer Wilfredo Rosado as she swore her allegiance and faith to the country and the duties of her new office.
But residents of the island could not vote in the November presidential election. Puerto Rico’s status as an American territory prohibits the island from having a say in presidential elections or legislators with voting power in Congress.
Both Velázquez and González — who sit on separate sides of the aisle — said the next four years under the Biden administration could have a big impact on policies that affect Puerto
Rico, from political status to access to government programs. For many public officials, Wednesday’s inauguration and the election were testaments to the larger role the island could have in federal politics
“It was part of the national debate,” said pro-statehood González of the questions over the future of the island’s political status, “Never before had statehood for Puerto Rico been in the national debate of the candidates.”
The role of well-known Puerto Ricans at the inauguration underscored their place in the American fabric — a central theme of the event — but also the larger importance of Hispanics as Biden prepares to govern for the next four years.
On the campaign trail, Biden looked to bolster his support among Puerto Rican voters, a large bloc within the fiercely contested Latino vote. He dispatched former President Barack Obama to Orlando to garner Boricua votes and announced his detailed plans for the island in boricua-heavy Central Florida.
The Biden administration has proposed far-reaching policies that aim to lift American territory out of debt, reduce poverty and speed up recovery from the string of devastating natural disasters that it has experienced in recent years.
The new president’s plans include helping rebuild the public education system, improve essential infrastructure like electricity, and help the island audit its debt, as well as support local businesses. The island has a poverty rate that is more than double the national average.
Moreover, De Jesús said he expects Biden to strike a more conciliatory tone. Trump notoriously called Puerto Rico “one of the most corrupt places on earth.”
“We will no longer be subjected to arbitrary and gratuitous insults by the president and his team,” De Jesús said.
González said that advocating for a change in political status is one of her priorities in Congress. There was a non-binding plebiscite on Puerto Rico’s status last November where statehood won 52.5% of the votes, although critics note that turnout was historically lower than usual.