Outgoing US President Joe Biden spent his last day in office in Charleston, South Carolina, from where he urged the American people to believe that better days will come.
A day before the federal holiday honoring slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., Biden recalled the impact of the civil rights movement and struck a hopeful tone for the country's future.
"We must keep hope. We must stay committed. We must always keep faith in a better day," Biden said.
In his televised farewell speech last Wednesday, he painted a bleak picture of the future of the United States and spoke of an oligarchy of the super-rich.
"We came into office facing one of the most difficult periods in our history. We managed to defeat the pandemic, build the strongest economy in the world with some of the most significant investments ever made in all of American history, especially for Americans of color to address enduring systemic racism and advance racial equality. From the freedom to vote to the freedom to choose, to restore America's leadership in the world, including our intensive efforts that led to the release of hostages and a ceasefire in the war in Gaza and an end to the war between Israel and Hamas," Biden said.
South Carolina holds special significance for Biden after he won the 2020 Democratic primary there, which brought him closer to the presidency. "I owe you a lot," he said.
Biden recalled the brutal past of slavery in the US and spoke to the congregation of Royal Missionary Baptist Church about why he entered public service - Martin Luther King Jr and Robert F. Kennedy were political role models.
In Charleston, Biden was attacked by critics who blamed his administration for US arms sales to Israel and claimed that the US has not done enough to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
As his motorcade passed through Charleston, a group chanted "Biden is a war criminal," according to the AP. (A2 Televizion)
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