Video transcript · 3 min · 325 words
Kamala Harris speech during Celebrating America: transcript
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks on the evening of the 2021 inauguration, describing "American aspiration" as the national character. She cites Lincoln, Dr. King and women's rights advocates, and says President Biden calls on Americans to unite and believe in what they can do together.
Key points
- Harris says she is honored to speak as Vice President, standing on the shoulders of those who came before.
- She says the moment reflects the nation's character: bold, fearless and ambitious even in dark times.
- She cites Lincoln's land grant colleges and the Transcontinental Railroad, and Dr. King's fight for racial and economic justice.
- She says the American experiment takes determination and the wisdom to keep refining it.
- She says she sees that determination in scientists, parents, innovators and educators.
- She says President Biden has called on Americans to see beyond crisis, do what is hard and good, and unite.
Chapters
Full transcript
0:00Ladies and gentlemen, the Vice President of the United States, Kamala D. Harris. Good evening. It is my honor to be here, to stand on the shoulders of those who came before, to speak tonight as your Vice President.
0:47In many ways, this moment embodies our character as a nation. It demonstrates who we are. even in dark times we not only dream we do we not only see what has been we see what can be we shoot for the moon and then we plant our flag on it We are bold, fearless, and ambitious. We are undaunted in our belief that we shall overcome, that we will rise up. This is American aspiration.
1:27In the middle of the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln saw a better future and built it with land grant colleges and the Transcontinental Railroad. In the middle of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. King fought for racial justice and economic justice. American aspiration is what drove the women of this nation throughout history to demand equal rights and the authors of the Bill of Rights to claim freedoms that had rarely been written down before.
2:02A great experiment takes great determination. the will to do the work, and then the wisdom to keep refining, keep tinkering, keep perfecting. The same determination is being realized in America today. I see it in the scientists who are transforming the future. I see it in the parents who are nurturing generations to come, in the innovators and the educators, in everyone, everywhere, who is building a better life.
2:39For themselves, their families, and their communities. This, too, is American aspiration. This is what President Joe Biden has called upon us to summon now. The courage to see beyond crisis. To do what is hard. To do what is good. To unite. to believe in ourselves, believe in our country, believe in what we can do together.
3:12Thank you and may God bless America.
Source and licence
Recording: File:Kamala Harris' speech during Celebrating America.ogv by The White House (2021-01-20), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
The transcript is machine speech-to-text by the TidyTools Audio & video transcriber; the summary, key points and chapters were written by Claude from that transcript. Both may contain errors: check the recording before quoting it.