I Witnessed Trump's Inauguration Which Coincided with MLK Day

Story and photos by Maestro Joyner.

On January 20, 2025, Donald J. Trump was sworn into office as the 47th President. The inauguration was held in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda with limited numbers of VIP guests—including billionaire tech leaders: Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and Tesla, SpaceX, and X CEO Elon Musk. 

Usually, supporters from all across the country congregate on the National Mall—a landscaped grass lawn that stretches from the U.S. Capitol to the Washington Monument—to rally in the joy of their new president. But due to freezing weather, the Presidential Inaugural Committee relocated the swearing in to the Rotunda and the Presidential Parade to the Capitol One Area which has a capacity of 20,356, far from the 200,000 expected to attend.

At the arena, Donald Trump signed his first executive orders – including pardons for January 6th rioters, withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord which addressed climate change, and extended Tik Tok For 90 days until they find a US company to buy it. Supporters had to drop bags, purses, and other handhelds outside in order to attend the celebration, which filled quickly causing many Trump supporters to watch the celebration outside on a big screen. 

I was at the National Mall and personally witnessed many Trump supporters celebrating, taking group pictures, dressing up as Trump or Uncle Sam, and selling merch. Moreover, I saw two people walking from the Capitol to the Monument in support of the Palestinian people.

Ironically, while Trump supporters celebrated the 47th President, many people across the US celebrated Martin Luther King Day, a federal holiday to honor MLK on the third Monday of every January. This year, these two events ended up on the same day. 

To honor Dr. King, many spoke about King's legacy, doing acts of community service to remember how he paved the way for civil rights for African Americans. His daughter Bernice A. King reminded supporters how her father was not loved by everyone and was assassinated. He was known as the most hated man in America based on a 1967 poll. But he still fought for his people. 

What I witnessed yesterday was a moment in history when many people celebrated Donald Trump, a man who was convicted of heinous felonies and still was able to win the presidency not once, but twice and another man, Martin Luther King, who put all of his time, money, and power into a fight for all people's rights.   

Maestro Joyner is a senior at Friendship Collegiate Academy.