Joe Biden is now president of a country in deep crisis. Our divisions have been laid bare by Donald Trump, who spent four years feeding lies to millions of his followers, even as the country fell apart.

I don’t believe that it’s Biden’s job to reunite the country. After seeing how easily white supremacy was normalized, and governmental safeguards were pulverized, I am left to wonder if we were ever united in the first place.

But that’s not the focus now. Not when everyday Americans are standing in food lines. Only tangible help matters.

To deliver that help and secure America’s future, Biden must learn from America’s past. Then he must address three urgent needs:

Solve the coronavirus crisis

 The coronavirus crisis has decimated the financial outlook for many Americans. It has also peeled back the covers on America’s inequities. For example, Black Americans have been nearly three times more likely than whites to die from COVID-19. But even as America has shown signs of recovery, the rich have bounced back sharply, while others have experienced even more financial difficulties. “This is especially true of people of color,” Biden treasury secretary nominee Janet Yellen told senators.

Click here to read the entire column in the Philadelphia Inquirer

Photo: Biden Inauguration – Locked Down Capitol. By Geoff Livingston. Creative Commons License