Commencement Speeches President Biden Delivers Commencement Address at Morehouse College : CSPAN : May 21, 2024 5:47pm-6:25pm EDT : Free Borrow & Streaming : Internet Archive (2024)

along with these oth television providers. giving you a front row seat to democracy. >> up next, president biden delivering the commencement address at morehouse college in atlanta. now, i have the honor f

introducing our commencement speaker. we are honored to welcome the 46th president of the united states, the honorable, joseph r. biden junior as our commencement speaker this morning. [applause] they say when you find a job that you love, it is not work at all. that can be said for joseph biden junior, who has spent his entire life in public service. his career began in 1970 in his hometown of delaware. when he was elected to the new castle county council, a post he

sought after graduating from syracuse law school. two years later, at 29, biden was one of the youngest people ever elected to the u.s. senate. where he remained for 36 years. during that time, he served 16 years as chairman, a ranking member of the senate judiciary committee, and while there, is much debate in the news about u.s. foreign relations. president biden served as chairman or ranking member of the senate foreign relations committee for 12 years, where he was at the forefront of the fight against terrorism and weapons of mass distraction.

-- destruction. in his speech a few years ago, president biden reminded us of the responsibility of the u.s. as the oldest and largest democracy on earth. he said, and i paraphrase, america is an idea. an idea stronger than any army. bigger than any ocean. more powerful than any dictator or tyrant. it gives hope to the most desperate people on earth. guaranteeing that everyone is treated with dignity. those words are a reminder of our role in the world, spoken by a man who has lived the standard. in 2008, joseph biden made history once again, this time,

as vice president to the country's first black president, barack obama. together -- [applause] together, president obama and vice president biden changed the way americans experience health care through the affordable care act. [applause] reducing the number of uninsured americans by 20 million people by the time they left office. when the country was hit by a gripping and deadly pandemic, it was president biden who steered the country to recovery. [applause] he was elected the 46th president of the united states in 2020. and sworn into office in january

of 2021. since then, he has remained steadfast in what he calls the fight for the soul of our nation. with the american recovery act, bipartisan infrastructure law, he has put americans on the track to prosperity while also fixing the nation's crumbling roads, bridges, and rails. [applause] it is a once in a generation investment in our nation that is putting millions of americans to work. i will conclude my in by calling attention to the fact that no administration in history since the inception of historically black colleges and universities has invested more in our institution than the biden administration has. [applause]

and if you look at his policies, it is very clear that those investments are not charity. but represent a clear view of the value and excellence that is embodied in these institutions. president biden is here today on these sacred grounds to share in this special day. ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to the podium, the 46th president of the united states, joseph r. biden. [applause] pres. biden: thank you.

thank you, thank you, thank you, president thomas, faculty, staff, alumni, and a special thanks to all the folks who helped you get here. your mothers, fathers, grandmothers, grandfathers. all of those who got you here, all the way in the back, parents, grandparents, all the health, stand up. because we owe you a debt of gratitude. all the families. [applause] that is not hyperbole. a lot of you, like my family, had to make significant sacrifices to get your kids to school. it mattered. it mattered a lot. and the friends of morehouse and the morehouse men, class of 2024, i have more and more people telling me what to do than i know what to do in the white house. [laughter] you all think i'm kidding, don't you?

you know i'm not. it's the best thing that has happened to me. scripture says, the prayers of a righteous man avail my. in a gusto, georgia, a righteous man once enslaved said, the story goes, fear no evil. he walked through the valley of the shadow of death on his way north to free soil in philadelphia. a baptist minister, he walked with faith in his soul, power and his steps in his feet, to glory. after the union won the war, he knew his prayers availed him freedom, that was not his alone. so this righteous man returned home, his feet weary, his spirit tired. 157 years ago, you all know the story, but the rest of the world

is on and they should. in the basem*nt of a baptist church, he and two other ministers planted the seeds of something revolutionary. and was, at the time. a school, his school to help formerly enslaved men, for education would be the great equalizer. an institution of higher learning, to become morehouse college. i don't know any other college in america that has that tradition. the class of 2024, you join a sacred tradition. an education that makes you free. and morehouse education makes you fearless. [applause] i mean it. congratulations. you're morehouse men. god love you.

and again, i think your families and friends who helped you get here, because they made sacrifices for you as well. this graduation date is a day for generations. a day of joy, a day earned, not given. we gather on this sunday morning , if we were in church, there would be this reflection, a reflection about resurrection and redemption. remember, jesus was buried on friday, and it was sunday that he rose again. but, we don't talk about saturday. when his disciples felt all hope was lost. in our lives, the lives of the nation, we have those saturdays. to bear witness the day before glory. seeing people's pain and not

looking away. what work is done on saturday to move pain to purpose. how can faith get a man, get a nation, through what was to come? here's what my faith has taught me. i was to first bite into demo -- two graduate from college. my junior year, spring break, i fell in love at first type -- first site, literally, a woman i adored. i graduated in her hometown. i got married and took a job at a law firm in my hometown, wilmington, delaware. but then, everything changed. one of my heroes, and he was my hero, a baptist minister, morehouse man, dr. martin luther king, in april of my law school graduation year, he was

murdered. my city of wilmington, to our great shame, an enslaved state, and we were segregated. delaware erected into flames when he was assassinated. literally. the only city in america the national guard patrolled every street corner for nine full months, drawing bayonets, many american cities since the civil war. dr. king's legacy had a profound impact on me and my generation. whether you are black or white. i left a fancy law firm that i had just joined and decided to become a public defender. and then a county counsel, and working to change our state's policy. the democratic party in delaware was a southern democratic party at the time. they wanted to change it to

become a northeastern democratic party. then, trying to get someone to run for the united states senate, the year nixon ran. i was 29 years of age. i had no notion of running. i loved reading about how everyone knew i was going to run, i didn't know i was going to run. when a group of senior members of the democratic party came to me, they couldn't find anybody to run, they said, you should run. nixon won night stay by 60% of the vote. we won by 3100 votes. we won by the finishing margins. over the broad coalition, including students from the best hbcu in america, delaware state university. you guys are good. [laughter] they got me elected. you all think i'm kidding. i'm not kidding. [laughter] by christmas, i was a newly elected senator, hiring staff in washington, d.c., when i got a

call from the first responders in my fire department in my hometown. it forever altered my life. they put a young woman on the line to say, there is an automobile accident. tractor-trailer into your wife's car while she was christmas shopping with your three children. the poor woman, she blurted it out, she said, your wife and daughter are killed. and your sons are badly injured. we are not sure they are going to make it either. i rushed from washington to the bedside. i wanted to pray, but i was so angry. i was angry at god, i was angry at the world. i have the same pain 43 years later, when that four-year-old boy survived, is a grown man, a father himself, lying in another hospital bed.

having contracted glioblastoma because he was a year and a rack, won the bronze star, living next to a burn pit. cancer took his last breath. in this walk of life, you can understand -- you come to understand that we don't know where or what faith will bring you, or when. we also know we don't walk alone. when you have been a beneficiary of compassion, of your family, friends, even strangers, you know how much compassion matters. i've learned there is no easy optimism. but by faith, by faith, we can find redemption. i was a single father for five years. no man deserves one great love, let alone two.

my youngest brother, hell of an athlete, he did a great thing, he introduced me to a classmate of his. he said, you will love her, she doesn't like politics. all kidding aside, until i met jill, who healed the family and -- in all the broken places, our family became my redemption. many of you have gone through similar or worse things. but you lean on others. they lean on you. and together, you keep the faith. until. a. better day tomorrow. it is not easy. i know four years ago, some of your speakers already mentioned, it felt like one of those saturdays. the pandemic rob do you have so much. some of you lost loved ones. mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters. who are not able to be here to celebrate with you today. you missed your high school graduation, started college as

george floyd was murdered. there was a reckoning on race. it's not for a wonder democracy you hear about actually works for you. what is democracy? if black men are being killed in the street. . what is democracy? a trail of broken promises, leaving black communities behind a pair of what is democracy? if you have to be 10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot. most of all, what does it mean, as we have heard before, to be a black man who loves his country, even if it does not love him back in equal measure. [applause] i sit behind the desk in the oval office, in front of the fireplace, across from my desk, i have two busts.

one of dr. king, one of bobby kennedy. i often find myself looking at those busts, making decisions. i ask myself, are we living up to what we say we are as a nation? to end racism and poverty, to deliver jobs and justice, to restore our leadership in the world. i looked down and see the rosary around my wrist that was added from my late son when he died. i ask myself, what would he say? i know the answer because he told me in his last days. my son knew his days were numbered. his last conversation was, dad, i'm not afraid. but i'm worried. i'm worried you are going to give up when i go. you were going to give up.

we have an expression in the biden family, when you want someone to give their word. you say, look at me. he was lying it -- lying there, he said, look at me, dad. he said, give me your word, give me your word as my father that you will not quit, that you will stay engaged, promise me, dad, stay engaged. promising. -- promise me. i wrote a book called "promise me, dad." not for the public at large, although a lot of people ended up buying it, it was for my grandchildren and great-grandchildren to know who beau biden was. the rosary around my wrist reminded me that. faith asks you to hold on to hope, to move heaven and earth, to make better days. that's my commitment to you. two showed you tomorrow -- to

show you democracy is still the way. black men are being killed in the street. we bear witness. for me, that means to call out the poison of white supremacy. to root out systemic racism. i stood up for george floyd's family, to help create a country. you don't need to have that talk with your son or grandson, as they get pulled over. instead of a trail of broken promises, we are investing more money than ever in black families and black communities. reconnecting black neighborhoods cut off by old highways and decades of disinvestment's, that no one cared about. we have delivered checks in pockets to reduce black child poverty, the lowest rate in history. removing every leadpipe in america so every child can drink clean water without fear of brain damage. we are delivering affordable high-speed internet.

so no child has to sit in their parents car to do their homework outside of a mcdonald's. instead of forcing you to prove you are 10 times better, we are breaking down doors, so you have more opportunities pair good paying jobs that you can raise a family on in your neighborhood. housing, more affordable and accessible. i walked a picket line and defended the rights of workers. i am relieving the burden of student debt, many of you have already had the benefit of it, so you can chase your dreams. [applause] grow the economy. the supreme court told me i couldn't, i found two other ways to do it. and we are going to do it. because it grows the economy. and i, in addition to the

original $7 billion, i am investing 16 billion more dollars. more than our history. [applause] because it is vital to our nation. most hbcu's don't have the endowments, the jobs that the future requires. opportunities on campus. opening doors so we can -- to be provided. today, record numbers of black americans have jobs, health insurance, and more than ever. democracy is also about adhering and heating your generation's call, and a plan -- planet free of climate crisis. showing the power to change the world. but also know, somebody will

ask, what is democracy? can't stop wars that break our hearts. and a democracy, we debate about america's role in the world. i want to say this clearly. i support peaceful nonviolent protests. your voices should be heard. i promise you, i hear them. i am determined to make my administration look like america. i have more african-americans in high places, including on the court, then any other president in american history because i need the input. [applause] what is happening in gaza and israel is heartbreaking. thomas's vicious attack -- hamas's vicious attacks and holding people hostage. i was there nine days after, pictures of a mother and daughter, pouring kerosene on them as they died. innocent palestinians caught in the middle of all of this.

men, women, and children killed and displaced, despite their desperate need of water, food, and medicine. this is a humanitarian crisis in gaza. that is why i have called for an immediate cease-fire. an immediate cease-fire to stop the fighting. [applause] bring the hostages home. i have been working on a deal as we speak, working around-the-clock. i'm also working around-the-clock for more than just one cease-fire, i'm working to bring the region together. working to build a lasting, durable peace. the question is, you see what is going on in israel today, what after? what after? what happens then? what happens in gaza? what rights do the palestinian people have? i'm working to make sure we finally get a true state solution, the only solution. [applause]

it is one of the hardest, most complicated problems in the world, there is nothing easy about it. i know it angers and frustrates many of you, including my family. most of all, i know it breaks your heart. it breaks mine as well. leadership is about fighting through the most intractable problems. it is about challenging anger, frustration, and heartbreak, to find a solution. it is about doing what you believe is right, even when it is hard and lonely. you are all future leaders, everyone of you, graduating today. that is not hyperbole. you are future leaders, all of you. you will face complicated, tough moments. these moments, you listen to others, but you will have to decide, guided by knowledge, conviction, and principle, and your own moral compass. the desire to know what freedom is, what it can be, is the heart

and soul of why this college was founded in the first place. and a free nation was born in the hearts of men, spellbound by freedom. that's the magic of morehouse. that's the magic of america. let's be clear. what happens to you and your family when old ghosts a new power sees power, your thoughts belong to you and everyone. today in georgia, they want allow water to be available to you while you wait in line to vote in an election. what in the hell is that all about? i'm serious. think about it. -- and then the attacks on black

election workers who count your votes. insurrectionists storm the capital with confederate flags are called patriots by some. not in my house. black police officers, black veterans protecting the capitol were called another word, as you recall. they often say aloud, these other groups, immigrants poison the blood of our country. as the grand wizard and fascists have said in the past. you know and i know, we all bleed the same color. in america, we are all created equal. extremists closed the door of opportunity, strike down affirmative action and attack diversity, equality and inclusion. i never thought i would be

president at a time where we banned books, not to write history but to erase history. to me, we make history. we know black history is american history. [applause] check my records, you know what i'm saying, i mean from my gut. we know black men will help us lead us into the future. black men from this class in this university. [applause] this is what we are up against. extremist forces aligned against the meeting and message of morehouse.

being a man is about tough talk, abusing power and bigotry. their idea of being a man is toxic. i ran into it all the time when i was younger. don't get me started. but that's not you. not us. you all know and demonstrate what it means to be a man. being a man is about strength. of respect and dignity. it's about showing up because it is too late if you have to ask. it's about giving hate no safe harbors. it's about standing up to abuse of power, whether physical, or psychological. it's about knowing faith without work is dead. and you are doing the work.

i look out at all of you read with and i see the next generation of morehouse men, doctors, researchers curing cancer. artists. i see preachers and advocates who might even join another morehouse man in the united states senate. you can clap for him. he's a good man. [applause] i'm proud to have the most diverse administration in history to tap into the full powers of our nation. i'm also proud of putting the first black woman on the united states supreme court. i know that no doubt, one day a morehouse man will be on that court as well. [applause] i've been vice president to the first black president who has become my close friend and

president to the first woman vice president. [applause] i have no doubt a morehouse man will be president one day, just after an a.k.a. from howard. [applause] she's tough, guys. i know i don't look like i've been around very long. [laughter] but in my career, for the first 30 years, i was told you are too young, kid. now, i'm too old. whether you are young or old, i

know what endures. the strength and wisdom of faith endures. i hope for you, my challenge to you is to still keep the faith so long as you can. that cap on your head proves you have earned your crown. the question is now, 25 years from now, 50 years from now, when you are asked to stand and address the next generation of morehouse men, what would you say you did with that power you've earned? what would you say you've done for your families, for your community, your country when it mattered most? i know what we can do. together, we will build a democracy worthy of our dreams. have a future where your legacies lift up those who

follow. prove the american dream is big enough for everyone to succeed. class of 2024, four years ago felt probably like saturday. four years later, you have made it to sunday. you can reveal a light of hope for yourself and for your nation. the prayers of a righteous man unveil as much. a righteous man, a good man, a morehouse man. god bless you all, we are expecting a lot from you. thank you. [applause]

>> president biden, thank you for that thought-provoking message. i want to say that from my point of view, you've been listening. you spoke to us about your vision for the future. you spoke to us, you spoke to the hard issues confronting our nation and the world at this moment. we are honored to have had you here with us today and we hope that this will not be your last visit to these sacred and celebrated grounds. please join me again, audience in thanking president biden for his generous words. [applause] and before you leave, president biden, we want to present you with a very special honor today. today, president biden, it's my

pleasure to infer upon you an honorary degree from morehouse college, and count you among the ranks of honorary morehouse men. [cheers and applause] and therefore, with the authority granted in me by the morehouse college board of trustees, i confer upon you, joseph r. biden jr. the honorary doctorate of law with all of the rights, privileges and responsibilities that pertain thereunto. congratulations, dr. joseph biden. [cheers and applause]

>> i'm not going home. [laughter] >> now, the morehouse college glee club will perform the spiritual "i ain't got weary yet."

>> i ain't got weary yet i ain't got weary yet i've been in the wilderness a mighty long time and i ain't got weary yet ♪

i ain't got weary yet i ain't got weary yet i've been in the wilderness a mighty long time and i ain't got >> today in the u.s. house lawmakers are considering 11 bills including a measure

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