The first Black House sergeant-at-arms William J. Walker was sworn in during his oath of office by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Ca., on Monday, marking a historic national moment.

During the House pro forma session, Walker affirmed his oath when Pelosi asked, “Do you solemnly swear or affirm that you will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, that you take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office of which you are about to enter, so help you God?” The Hill reported. 

BREAKING: Speaker Pelosi swears in DC National Guard Major Gen. William J. Walker to be the House Sergeant-at-Arms, the first Black American to serve in the role. pic.twitter.com/0bYGFh8FTU

— Forbes (@Forbes) April 26, 2021

The event brings national attention to Walker who is the former head of the Washington D.C. National Guard. The newly sworn-in sergeant-at-arms is expected to escort President Joe Biden down the House chamber’s center aisle ahead of the national address to Congress on Wednesday. This will be Biden’s first address since he took office in January. 

Prior to administering his oath, Pelosi called Walker’s appointment “historic,” saying it’s “an important step forward for this institution and our nation.” 

He will be filling in the vacant position that was filled on a temporary basis by Timothy Blodgett following the previous House sergeant-at-arms Paul Irving’s resignation. Irving originally stepped down from his role in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 insurrection. 

Walker was serving as the D.C. National Guard chief during the attack on the Capitol and had provided assistance to the Capitol Police overrun by a mob of former president Donald Trump supporters.

As Blavity previously reported, the Chicago native later testified before Congress to express his concerns over the military’s delay in deploying National Guard troops to the Capitol.

“The Army senior leaders did not think that it looked good, it would be a good optic. They further stated that it could incite the crowd,” Walker said at a Senate hearing.

He added that acting Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert Contee and then-Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund “passionately pleaded for the District of Columbia National Guard to get to the Capitol with all deliberate speed.”

Walker also emphasized Army officials believed at the time that “it would not be their best military advice to have uniformed Guardsmen on the Capitol.”

According to NPR, Walker said he had troops “ready and sitting idly for hours before he received the authorization to send them on the field.” 

At the announcement of his appointment in March and following his guidance and leadership, Speaker Pelosi said Walker “will be an important assent to the House.”