Fact-checking Biden’s disputed arrest claims during civil rights protests

President Joe Biden recently recounted a familiar story on “The Howard Stern Show” about his supposed arrest while defending the civil rights of Black Americans during the desegregation of suburban areas decades ago. His mother is said to have referred back to this instance as part of her plea for him to accept Barack Obama’s offer in 2008 to be his running mate, citing Biden’s presence at a protest where police had brought him home due to concerns he would get into trouble while standing with Black families. However, fact-checkers have previously debunked this claim as there is no evidence that such an arrest ever occurred. In the past, Biden has told variations of this story without mentioning any arrests and instead claimed that police took him back home due to safety concerns during a protest in Delaware’s Lynnfield neighborhood around 1959 when he was sixteen years old. While there were protests against Black families moving into previously all-White communities at the time, reports indicate only four teenagers arrested for possessing fireworks and seven arrests total occurred outside of the home being defended by police in support of the newly integrated family. It is impossible to verify whether Biden was present during these events as his mother passed away in 2010. This story follows a series of false claims made by Biden regarding personal past incidents, including assertions he has never earned over $400,00 per year or used to operate an eighteen-wheeler truck. Previously while running for president, Biden claimed that he was “arrested” in South Africa during his time as a US senator attempting to visit Nelson Mandela; however, no evidence supports this statement either. After media outlets refuted these allegations, Biden stated that though police stopped him, the word arrested was not intended for interpretation in such a way.