FACT CHECK: Viral Post Claims Joe Biden Did Not Sign Anti-Lynching Bill In March

Elias Atienza | Senior Reporter

An image shared on Facebook shared over 300 times claims President Joe Biden faked the signing of an anti-lynching bill in March.

Verdict: False

Biden did sign the bill in March, according to photo and video evidence. There is no evidence suggesting the signing occurred earlier than March 29.

Fact Check: 

Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act of 2022, which makes lynching a federal hate crime, into law March 29, according to CNN. The ceremony, which took place at the White House, was attended by members of Congress from both parties as well as advocates, the outlet reported.

The post claims the event did not take place March 29. “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,” the caption reads.

There are several photos and videos from the March 29 event. The signing of the bill took place in the Rose Garden, not the South Lawn, according to The New York Times. The White House published a transcript of Biden’s remarks, where it also placed the event at the Rose Garden.

Photos taken by The Associated Press (AP) placed the signing in the Rose Garden, as well, with the creation date of one marked, “March 29, 2022 04:06:38 PM.” PBS NewsHour and CBS News posted livestreams of the signing on YouTube the same day.

A reverse image search of the Associated Press photo found no evidence to suggest the picture or the signing of the bill took place before March 29. (RELATED: Did Joe Biden Say The N-Word During A Recent Speech?)

While the temperature was cold that day, it remained above freezing and reached a high of 47 degrees, according to The Weather Channel website. Attendees at the event were wearing coats. Vice President Kamala Harris, for example, can be seen wearing a coat in an AP photo and in a video taken of her speech.

Elias Atienza

Senior Reporter
Follow Elias on Twitter Have a fact check suggestion? Send ideas to [email protected].

Trending