On October 15, President Joe Biden visited Connecticut for the second time during his presidency, making addresses and dedications at the University of Connecticut (UConn) and the Capitol Child Development Center in Hartford.
While speaking at the UConn event, titled “Human Rights for the Next Generation,” President Biden encountered criticism from supporters of former President Donald Trump P’00, as well as immigration reform activists on their way to and from the event. Other attendees included UConn faculty and staff, members of the Connecticut Congressional delegation, Connecticut Governor Lamont, the UConn Board of Trustees, and, in a nod to the next generation, UConn students.
The main purpose of President Biden’s visit to UConn was overseeing the dedication of the Dodd Center for Human Rights. The center was named after the late Senator Thomas J. Dodd and his son, former Senator Chris Dodd. During the dedication ceremony, President Biden praised Senator T. Dodd, a diplomat and attorney who served as a U.S. Senator and House Representative from Connecticut, for his work advocating for human rights. President Biden noted Senator T. Dodd’s work at the Nuremburg trials that occured between 1945 and 1946, in which Nazi war criminals were brought to justice after World War II. The President also commended the work of Senator C. Dodd, a former colleague of President Biden in the Senate, on continuing his father’s legacy. “Only in acknowledging the truth can we prevent the repetition of atrocities which are happening now in other parts of the world,” said President Biden.
The Center’s purpose is to address human rights as an economic, social, and cultural issue. Dr. Glenn Mitoma, director of Dodd Human Rights Impact stated, “we have always emphasized the global dimensions of human rights that are inclusive of U.S. policy and practice, whether that is the treatment of migrants or access to food security.”
Continuing his UConn remarks, President Biden iterated the importance of and his dedication to human rights as a domestic and foreign policy: “We’re based on one guiding principle: we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men and women are created equal, endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights inducing life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We’ve never lived up to it. We’ve never, until very recently, walked away from it.”
President Biden stated human rights are a domestic policy as well as a foreign policy. President Biden noted the strong correlation between human rights and democracy, mentioning the importance of confronting the history of racism within the U.S. to move forward. “Our programs are rooted in a similar understanding of that history and its importance today.”
When he visited the Capitol Child Development Center in Hartford, President Biden emphasized the importance of investing in child care to help working-class families, a key pillar of his presidential platform, the “Build Back Better Agenda.” This framework plans to cut taxes, create jobs, and lower costs for working-class families. President Biden hopes to achieve these goals by making the wealthiest and largest corporations pay more in taxes and by making the tax code more equitable in correlation to taxpayers’ income bracket. In support of President Biden’s agenda, Governor Ned Lamont tweeted, “@POTUS has led two transformational deals w/ Build Back Better & Infrastructure that will uplift our families, create millions of good-paying jobs, & make our businesses and workers the most competitive in the world once again. Thank you, President Biden. We’ll be better for it.”
