Do You Remember 2020?

Kobe Bryant died on January 26, 2020. That was just 5 months ago, but it seems like 5 years ago. Who knew his tragic demise would be the beginning of such a tumultuous year. Within weeks, you’d start hearing about COVID-19. What Trump once tried to dismiss soon turned into a global pandemic and the US quickly took the spotlight from Italy. At the time of this article being published, the US has more than 2.3 million cases and 123,000 deaths.

Before you knew it, unemployment skyrocketed to nearly 15% in April as 40 million people filed for unemployment over a 10-week period. The government passed trillions of dollars in stimulus relief; yet, very little of it made it to the people who needed it the most, those in poverty and small business owners. Instead, you had billion-dollar organizations like the LA Lakers giving the money back, which was intended for real small businesses.

If that wasn’t enough, the country witnessed Ahmaud Arbery, who was simply jogging in his Georgia neighborhood, being chased down and murdered in cold blood. The Breonna Taylor murder in Louisville, Kentucky began to get attention, and then on May 25th… for 8 minutes and 46 seconds the world witnessed the murder of George Floyd, and that moment was like the straw that broke the camels back. Angry citizens took to the streets. Protests and riots ensued, and they’ve been protesting ever since in just about every major city in the country. The senseless murder of Rashard Brooks has added more even tension and pain.

Now, experts are warning that a second wave of COVID-19 is damn near inevitable due to states reopening too fast, a lack of social distancing, and people flat out refusing to wear a mask.

It’s not even July yet.

Will states be forced to shut down again? Will schools open in the fall? And we can’t forget the presidential election in November, arguably one of the biggest elections of our time.

One thing for sure, in 10 – 20 – 30 years from now, people will ask do you remember 2020. Let’s hope the second half of the year is better than the first. Considering the human toll of COVID-19, record unemployment, and civil unrest which has spread throughout the world, I’m not sure we can sustain another 6 months like the 6 we just experienced.

Similar Read: Should Biden’s VP be a Black Woman?