On the anniversary of the "March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom," an iconic human rights march held in 1963 in Washington D.C., where 250,000 people participated, President Biden welcomed Martin Luther King's family and several civil rights advocates to the White House. Vice President Kamala Harris was also present during the reception.
Biden began by expressing gratitude to his distinguished guests, who are symbolic figures in the realm of human rights advocacy, and emphasized the significance of their work.
Reflecting on a racist attack in Florida over the weekend that claimed the lives of three Black individuals, Biden asserted that hatred can be stopped by addressing it directly with the American people. He pointed out that the majority of Americans are in unity against hatred, and this unity can effectively combat it.
In a meeting attended by figures such as Martin Luther King's eldest son and his wife, Arndrea Waters King, his sister Bernice King, and civil rights advocate Reverend Al Sharpton, Biden stated, "I think we've all said many times that silence is complicity. We will not be silent, and therefore we must act against this violence fueled by hate."
Vice President Harris referred to multiple generations within the King family present at the meeting, emphasizing the importance of keeping the civil rights struggle alive through each new generation. She highlighted that most people in the United States have more in common than what separates them.
Harris expressed, "Most people in this country have so much more in common than what separates them."
