Washington, DC—In advance of President Biden’s address to a joint session of Congress tonight, People For the American Way President Ben Jealous released the following statement:

“We are excited to hear that President Biden will lay out a number of critically important goals tonight when he officially unveils his American Families Plan. This plan in many ways exemplifies the commitment to creating more opportunity for all Americans, including historically marginalized communities, that we voted for when we elected Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. At the same time, there are other critical issues we want to hear more about tonight. The president should be specific about the administration’s vision for ending police violence and reimagining public safety while instituting broad reforms to our criminal justice system. He should clearly state his commitment to diversifying the federal bench, demographically and professionally. And he should make an unequivocal commitment to shoring up our democracy with the measures outlined in the For the People Act. That includes making it clear to the Senate and the American people that failure to pass the Act is off the table, under any circumstances.”

About People For the American Way

People For the American Way is a progressive advocacy organization founded to fight right-wing extremism and build a democratic society that implements the ideals of freedom, equality, opportunity and justice for all. We encourage civic participation, defend fundamental rights, and fight to dismantle systemic barriers to equitable opportunity. Learn more: https://www.pfaw.org.