On January 20, celebrity and businessman Donald J. Trump will take the oath of office, becoming the 45th president of the United States. The 68th Presidential inauguration will be at noon in front of the Capitol building and all FCPS students and staff, along with federal government workers are given the day off to commemorate the historic event.

Trump’s anything but smooth campaign trail has predictably resulted in difficulty planning his inauguration. As a part of presidential tradition there will be a parade for the President-Elect,  but this year it will be about a half an hour shorter; as many performers didn’t want to play for such a controversial candidate. Barack Obama’s inauguration featured many popular celebrities like Beyonce and Yo Yo Ma but many ‘a-list’ celebrities denied to invitations to play at Trump’s.

A few celebrities are actually planning to attend marches and demonstrations protesting the new President by joining events such as the “Women’s March” which expects at least 200,000 people attending on Jan. 21 and the group “Not my President” which expects 20,000 people to protest at the Capitol on inauguration day.

Many students will also be in attendance at the protests to voice their opinions.

“[I’ll be attending the Women’s March, but] I am not going to the Women’s March to protest,” senior Julia Sheehy said. “I am going to show the power of the woman and to meet a multitude of women who share the same values as me and have enough self respect to have a desire for equality.”

Presidential inaugurations are traditionally aimed to show a peaceful transition of power but that is especially difficult this year due to how negative the presidential campaign was. Along with Obama, Hillary Clinton will be in attendance hoping to give the message to her supporters to unite as a nation and give Trump a chance.

Sheehy is among many students who don’t necessarily support Hillary, but are more offended by what Trump seemingly stand for through his racist and misogynistic comments.

“I am not going to the inauguration because I don’t want to be surrounded by people who could support trump,” Sheehy said. “I would not have gone for Hillary either, not because I didn’t support her. I would’ve happily watched the inauguration on TV and been excited about all the positive changes that could be coming for women.”

For the students and staff who would rather go and be a part of the action instead of sitting at home on the couch and watch history pass them by it is recommended that they take the metro. For this occasion they will have a special commemoration card with the picture of the White House and they will distribute a card sleeve with the picture of the president elect side by side with his campaign slogan.

There are limited spaces and to access to a better view it is recommended that you will get an inauguration ticket. The only way to get these tickets is by requesting to your representative or senator depending on what district you live in. Tickets are distributed in a lottery due to limited tickets and high demand. If you are unable to get a ticket and get there early enough there will still be spaces on the lawn.

Chief Justice John Roberts will administer the oath on the west front of the capitol building. The protocol follows that the Vice President will do the oath first and then the President do the same second but will also present a speech reflecting the new administration goals and what he expects for this new transition of power.

It is now a task for the new president to unite the country by gaining the trust of the people that didn’t vote for him and to show his potential as the new President of the United States.