Joe Biden didn’t sign an antilynching bill in a ceremony outside the White House on March 29.
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Yes, Joe Biden signed an antilynching bill at the White House on March 29
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- News reports, video recordings and photos from media organizations corroborate White House photos that show President Joe Biden signing an antilynching bill and speaking to a seated audience in the Rose Garden.
On March 29, President Joe Biden announced on Twitter that he would be signing "the long overdue Emmett Till Antilynching Act" into law that afternoon, making lynching a federal hate crime.
His verified Twitter account livestreamed both the signing and remarks that followed from Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Michelle Duster, the great-granddaughter of civil rights pioneer Ida B. Wells. The video shows that the event took place outside the White House, before a seated audience.
But a Facebook post claims that photos taken during the event didn’t actually happen on March 29.
"This DID NOT happen yesterday," the March 30 post says. "The south lawn of the WH was completely empty, no chairs or anything set up. ABSOLUTELY nothing. Also, it was FREEZING cold yesterday. 30° and extremely windy. I was bundled up and my cheeks were numb after about 15 min. More lies. FAKE NEWS."
This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
Featured Fact-check
First, the event took place in the Rose Garden, which is just outside the West Wing and Oval Office, and north of the South Lawn.
According to the National Weather Service, it was cold, but not freezing. Around the time Biden spoke that afternoon, the temperature was about 45 degrees and the wind was blowing at about 10 mph. That’s "gentle breeze" territory, according to the Weather Service’s guide to estimating wind speed.
The video shared by the White House shows that Biden, Harris and Duster were all wearing coats, as were people seated for the ceremony.
But White House officials weren’t the only ones to capture this event. There’s corroborating photo and video evidence and news reports from media organizations, including the Associated Press, Getty Images, and the New York Times.
We rate this post False.
Our Sources
Facebook post, March 30, 2022
President Joe Biden tweet, March 29, 2022
President Joe Biden tweet, March 29, 2022
The New York Times, Biden Signs Bill to Make Lynching a Federal Crime, March 29, 2022
The White House, Remarks by President Biden at Signing of H.R. 55, the "Emmett Till Antilynching Act," March 29, 2022
The White House, Garden tour map, visited March 30, 2022
White House map, visited March 30, 2022
Insider, Inside the White House's sprawling secret grounds, which include a hidden garden, May 6, 2018
National Weather Service, Historical weather for Washington D.C., March 29, 2022
National Weather Service, Estimating wind, visited March 30, 2022
Getty Images photos, March 29, 2022
Associated Press, Biden signs bill making lynching a federal hate crime, March 29, 2022
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Yes, Joe Biden signed an antilynching bill at the White House on March 29
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