‘This is monumental’: Valley residents react to historic Inauguration Day
Like millions of other Americans, Becki Robinson in Cathedral City watched President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris being sworn into office from right at home in her living room.
"I got up, set my alarm before 7 a.m. so I wouldn't have to miss one minute of the inauguration today," Robinson said. "I have laughed; I have cried; I have clapped. I stood during the star spangled banner that was so wonderful by Lady Gaga. I had my hand over my heart during the Pledge of Allegiance."
For the last two and a half years, Robinson has been registering Coachella Valley residents to vote, adding nearly 900 new voters ahead of Election Day.
"Every schlep, every setup, every heat, every cold, every day that we sat there for hours when not one person came in to register – it was all worth it once we saw the inauguration today," she said. "I feel like I have done my service to the country and I will continue to do so."
Rhea Hoffman and her kids watched history being made as Kamala Harris took her oath as not only the first woman, but also the first black woman and first Asian-American to hold nationally-elected office.
"Definitely put chills down my spine to see Kamala up there," Hoffman said. "They saw a country that unified, a country that changed – and that was huge."
She and her 9-year-old daughter Stori dressed in the vice president's signature chucks and pearls.
"I said, 'Stori, today is huge. We have never had a female vice president before. This is monumental,'" Hoffman said. "And we put those on and it was special – we felt feminine yet strong at the same time. And it was also one of those unifying moments."
"Every little girl, every little girl of color at this point in time can look and say, 'I can be the president of the United States. I can be the vice president of the United States,'" Robinson said, adding that her voter registration work isn't over.
She'll be out this Saturday at the Mary Pickford Theater registering more people for Cathedral City's special election coming this March.
You can reach Jake on Twitter, Facebook or email him at jake.ingrassia@kesq.com.
