President Biden is signing executive actions Tuesday on housing and justice reforms, measures the White House says will uphold one of his core campaign promises: to advance "racial equity for Americans who have been underserved and left behind."
In a tweet Tuesday morning, Biden said the actions will "push us closer to that more perfect union we've always strived to be."
America has never lived up to its founding promise of equality for all, but we’ve never stopped trying. Today, I’ll take action to advance racial equity and push us closer to that more perfect union we’ve always strived to be.
— President Biden (@POTUS) January 26, 2021
According to a senior government official, Biden will sign executive actions that will:
- direct the Department of Housing and Urban Development "to take steps necessary to redress racially discriminatory federal housing policies;"
- direct the Department of Justice to end its use of private prisons;
- and reaffirm the federal government's "commitment to tribal sovereignty and consultation."
Biden will also sign a presidential memorandum aimed at combating xenophobia against Asian American and Pacific Islanders.
The official, who spoke to reporters on the condition of not being identified, said "this is not the end of our work on racial equity," adding "we'll have a lot more work to do in the coming weeks and months."
Tuesday's measures continue Biden's rollout of more than 20 executive actions in his administration's first days.
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