January 21, 2009 

Barack Obama Inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States

Bahasa Indonesia

Washington, January 21 – On the west side of the U.S. Capitol building, overlooking the National Mall, Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. President Obama’s inauguration marked the 56th time that a U.S. president was sworn in for a four-year term since 1789, when George Washington first took the same oath. The swearing-in ceremony — televised since 1949 — was attended by Obama’s family, past and future Cabinet members, members of the Senate and House of Representatives, Supreme Court justices and many invited guests. An estimated 2 million people filled Washington’s National Mall to watch and hear Obama sworn in around noon local time.

While taking his oath, Obama placed his hand on the same Bible President Lincoln used at his first inauguration in 1861. The theme of Obama’s inaugural address, “A New Birth of Freedom,” commemorated the 200th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln’s birth. The words came from the Gettysburg Address, and it expressed Lincoln’s hope that the sacrifice of those who died to preserve the nation shall lead a “new birth of freedom” for our nation.

The inaugural events began in Philadelphia on January 17, where Obama boarded a train for Washington. Following the path taken by former President Abraham Lincoln before his inauguration in 1861, Obama and Biden made several stops along the 219 kilometer route to speak to Americans. Other pre-inaugural activities for Obama included attending church services, laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery, and watching a star-studded concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on January 18.

Obama, along with other Americans, observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 19 with community service projects. Obama encouraged Americans to use the day honoring the late civil rights leader, a federal holiday on which most schools and businesses are closed, to give back to their communities. On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream Speech” at the Lincoln Memorial, 45 years before Obama would deliver his inaugural address as the nation’s first African-American president.

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