While many of us agree that 2020 can be a long walk off a small pier, some of the worst things that have happened have brought out the best in us. In the midst of hopelessness, isolation, fear and loss there were moments of laughter, gratitude and, above all, compassion.
Here is a list of the X good things that happened in 2020:
1. Good problem
Although the United States has suffered horrific acts of police violence against people of color, the country has come together to declare that this is unacceptable and that long-term changes should be made to guide policing. It was what the late Dep. John Lewis (D-GA) called “good problems”. The kind of problem that makes a difference and can help change the world.
In Minneapolis, after George Floyd’s death was broadcast worldwide, the investigations revealed systematic problems within the department. This prompted the city council to intervene to discuss the reconstruction of the entire department and the way policing is done in the city. Floyd’s six-year-old daughter said “Daddy changed the world”. He actually did.
Extensive conversations also began after an unarmed, naked man in Rochester, New York, choked during a clear mental health emergency. Police departments have confessed that they are often called upon to deal with these situations, for which they have clearly not been trained.
While tensions have increased between racist groups and Black Lives Matter, it has become clear that the overwhelming number of Americans believe that there is a problem that must be addressed in policing black communities.
George Floyd’s daughter Gianna Floyd says “Daddy Changed The World”
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2. Manufacturers of masks, disinfectants and shield makers
In the early days of the pandemic, President Donald Trump refused to implement the Defense Production Act to create more personal protective equipment for frontline health professionals and first responders dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. Masks became rare and doctors and nurses started to get sick.
Thousands of Americans came to help. The news flooded the news about families using their quarantine time to sew masks with extra barriers to keep workers safe. It also helped unemployed people who could sell masks on sites like Etsy, so that Americans could buy homemade masks instead of buying much needed N95 masks in hospitals. The Americans flocked to the GoFundMe pages to donate as much money as they could to help purchase the necessary equipment until the government was willing to acknowledge that it was a problem.
Face shields have also become scary, but with 3D printers and enthusiastic students at Penn, a robotics team in New Mexico, professors at five universities, DC artists and engineers, DC students, a Missouri student and professor, residents of isolated Chicago and dozens of companies stepped up to help.
After it became clear that washing hands and keeping things clean was an important step in preventing spread, distilleries across the country switched from vodka, tequila and whiskey to make hand sanitizer.
Amid Trump’s failures and his government’s response, it was the Americans who came together in a time of crisis to help each other. For every person entitled to go crazy over a mask order in a supermarket, there were hundreds at home sewing masks to help.
The distillery starts to make hand sanitizer
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3. The election
Although President Donald Trump did not say he was happy about it, the 2020 election ended the “President of Twitter”. The best thing about the election besides the result, however, was that it set records. For generations, election attendance has been anemic, with only occasional outbreaks of energy. This year was not a mere explosion, it was a huge wave of participation, whether some believe it or not.
While the second round of the Georgia Senate does not take place until after the new year, it has already proven to attract even more voters than the November election. Analysts believe it is attributed to young people who were not old enough to vote in November, but now are and want their voice to be heard.
At the local level, a historic number of LGBTQ officials and women of color were also elected, making US leaders look a little more like the population.
Perhaps most memorably, however, K-Pop fans made Donald Trump look like an idiot.
Trump takes an epic walk of shame after TikTok users and K-pop fans track his Tulsa rally
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4. American institutions realized
It has been a tumultuous four years under Donald Trump, but in his latest attack on American institutions, everyone seems to be holding back.
Despite nominating a number of judges across the country and to the United States Supreme Court, the nominees refused to circumvent the law to hand over the election to the president without evidence. When Trump’s lawyers were unable to provide any, the cases were closed. The Judiciary has proven that when the Executive falls into tyranny and the Legislature into cowardice, it will defend American law.
Supreme Court rejects Trump-backed election | NBC Nightly News
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5. Kamala Harris
The California senator is weeks away from being sworn in as the first woman, the first black woman and the first Asian American vice president of all time. Amid Trump’s anger attacks and threats to topple the election, remembering Kamala can certainly bring a smile to the face of American history.
We did it, @JoeBiden. https://t.co/oCgeylsjB4
– Kamala Harris (@Kamala Harris)1604769807.0
6. You cannot be fired for being transgender
Although the face of the Supreme Court has changed forever, while the great judge Ruth Bader Ginsberg was still alive, the Supreme Court ruled in a historic 6-3 decision that Americans cannot be fired for their gender identity.
7. DACA is standing
Another important Supreme Court decision was President Donald Trump’s attempt to destroy the Postponed Childhood Action. The program made it safe for young people who were brought to the United States as children out of the shadows and working or going to school without fear of deportation.
8. Weed
More and more states are legalizing marijuana. While this may lead to more people embracing the noble life, the more it started a broader conversation about nonviolent drug offenders, especially people of color, imprisoned with ridiculous sentences. There is still a lot of work to be done, but the prisoners have the support of the Americans. Most now realize that it is foolish to be arrested for having a bag of marijuana in a state that now sells it legally, let alone sending them to prison for ten years or more.
The Justice Department plans to release 6,000 nonviolent drug offenders from prison
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9. The Earth had a good year
The positive side of the work at home revolution and the massive unemployment crisis was the drop in carbon emissions. Although this year they dropped a record 7% in 2021, they are likely to rise again in the United States. However, other countries have taken significant steps as part of the Paris Agreement to achieve zero emissions by the middle of the century. President-elect Joe Biden is likely to return to the deal, and if Democrats win in Georgia, there is a chance that a new era of clean energy is on the horizon, with jobs to keep up.
Global carbon emissions show record drop in 2020
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10. Animals
Due to the pandemic, more Americans have adopted pets in the past year than at any time in history. In fact, there is a historic reduction in furry friends in animal shelters. Twenty percent of people who responded to a Nielsen survey in July said they adopted one or more dogs or cats earlier this year, up from 5% last year.
Invaluable moments when animals realize they are being adopted
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