2020: A Year in Review

The following story was written by a student on the staff of The Jaguar Times as part of Hilliard Bradley High School’s Journalism Production course.

by Jahari Henry, Staff Writer

How do you begin to discuss the most consequential year of the 21st century so far? How do you begin to talk about a year of dramatic loss in life? How do you begin to talk about a year that will define a whole generation coming of age? This year 2020, a year that has brought out the very best and worst of humans, has shown us through turbulence, destruction and chaos we have the ability to endure and overcome. Below are the events from this year that have and will shape the lives of so many. Enjoy!

January 2020

Australian Wildfires - The Australian “Bushfires” which began in 2019 and drifted into 2020,

continued to devastate the Australian wilderness as the year began. Upon its conclusion in May, 46 million acres were scorched and billions of animals were displaced.

Qasem Solemani killed - A United States military drone strike killed Iranian General Qasem

Solemani. This strained the relationship between the already hostile countries.

Iran strikes American military base - In retaliation to the killing of General Soleimani, Iran uses

air strikes on a military base in Iraq that held American shoulders.

COVID 19 officially enters the United States - This whole article could be about the Pandemic

and its effects on the world. However, there is too much to cover this year to do so.

President Trump Impeachment trial - What seems like ancient history now, President Donald

Trump became only the third President in American history to be impeached by the House of

Representatives.

Kobe Bryant dies - Legendary Basketball player Kobe Bryant his daughter Gianna and seven

others all in a tragic helicopter crash outside Calabasas California.

United Kingdom withdraws from the EU - Nearly 4 years since the British people narrowly

voted to leave the European Union, on January 31 the United Kingdom formally left the

European Union.

February 2020

Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) shoots a free throw at a 2005 Game against the Golden State

Warriors

President Trump acquitted - President Donald Trump is acquitted of both charges during his

impeachment trial. The ruling in this case made Trump the third president to be acquitted of all

charges.

Kansas Chiefs wins Super Bowl - After finishing 12-4 in the regular season the Kansas City

Chiefs went on to win Super Bowl 54 over the San Francisco 49ers 31-20. This was their first

Super Bowl in 50 years.

Harvey Wienstien found guilty - The accusation that triggered the 2017 #MeToo movement

came full circle when Harvey Weinstein was convicted of Sexual Assualt and Rape. A huge

victory for the #MeToo Movement.

United States signs deal with Taliban - On February 29 The United States signed a conditional

peace agreement with the Taliban. This agreement will lead to the gradual withdrawal of U.S

troops from Afghanistan.

March 2020

Donald Trump gleefully holds up newspaper that declares “Trump Acquitted”

March Madness canceled - Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic ravaging the Country and

lockdowns all around the nation. The NCAA Basketball Tournament March Madness is

cancelled for the first time in its history.

Breonna Taylor is murdered - Breonna Taylor an African American resident of Louisville,

Kentucky is shot 6 times and killed by 3 officers after her house was raided because of suspicion

of narcotic related activities.

April 2020

Coronavirus Cases surpass 1,000,000 - As the pandemic raged on and the world locked down cases of the deadly disease reached 1 million cases world wide.

America Leads the Way - The United States continued to lead the way in COVID-19 cases,

reaching 1 million cases 26 days after the world reached the same milestone of 1 million cases.

Sidewalk with the words “You Murdered Breonna Taylor” written in red

May 2020

Asian Giant Hornet arrives in the United States - The Asian Giant Hornet or “Murder Hornet”

arrived in the United States in May. Originally from Japan the Murder Hornet measures up to 2

inches long can wipe out whole bee colonies.

George Floyd Murdered/Massive protest - On May 26 a video surfaced of George Floyd an

unarmed black man who was pinned to the ground and his neck knelt on by Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin. This sparked widespread nationwide protests that would continue throughout the summer. It also forced America to once again reckon with its deep rooted history of race relations.

SpaceX launches first astronauts into space - Elon Musk's SpaceX becomes the first private

company to launch Astronauts into Space, sending two astronauts to the International Space

Station.

Nurse treating COVID-19 patient in the intensive care unit.

June 2020

DACA lawsuit by Trump Administration is struck down by the Supreme Court - The Trump

administration's lawsuit in order to remove the Obama-era Dreamer Program or DACA is struck down and DACA is ruled constitutional. DACA allows for the children of undocumented

immigrants born in the United States to remain in the U.S.

Death Toll Increases - The ongoing pandemic by early June has claimed 400,000 lives

worldwide. This figure would later increase to 500,000 near the end of the month.

July 2020

Protests like this one in Miami, Florida sprouted up all over the country in the wake of the murder of George Floyd.

A victim of COVID-19 being buried in Iran.

John Lewis dies - Legendary Civil Rights leader John Lewis passes away at 80 years old.

Wildfires Begin - Near the end of this month the California wildfires begin.

August 2020

Biden picks Harris - Democratic nominee for President Joe Biden picked California Senator

Kamala Harris as his running mate, making her only the fourth woman in history to run on a

presidential ticket.

California is blazing - Governor of California Gavin Newsom declares a state of emergency as

27 wildfires burn across the state ravaging forests and cities.

Actor Chadwick Boseman dies - Actor Chadwick Boseman the star of blockbuster films like 42, Get on Up, 21 Bridges and Black Panther died after a long battle with colon cancer.

Upon his death Congressmen John Lewis became the first African American Lawmaker to lie in the Capital’s Rotunda.

Beirut Explosion - Huge explosions, the cause of which are unknown, leave 200 dead and more than 6000 injured in Beirut, Lebanon.

September 2020

COVID Deaths - Global COVID deaths reach 900,000 with the United States contributing

190,589 deaths to that number. Later this month American COVID deaths would reach 200,000 as worldwide COVID deaths reached 1,000,000.

Wildfires Rage on - Wildfires in California continue to rage on. The city of San Francisco is

blanketed orange due to the smoke from the wildfires.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg passes away - Ruth Bader Ginsburg legendary Supreme Court justice

passed away at the age 87. She was the first Jewish member of the court and only the second

woman to serve on the court. Later in the month President Donald Trump announced that Amy Coney Barret would fill her seat.

Impact of the devastating explosion in Beirut, Lebanon

Tampa Bay Lightning wins Stanley Cup - The Tampa Bay Lightning won their second Stanley

Cup in franchise history. They beat the Dallas Stars 2-0 in Game Six to win the series 4-2.

October 2020

President Donald Trump gets COVID- 19 - In a series of events that reflected the year, President Trump contracted COVID -19 himself after months of not wearing a mask and spreading misinformation about the virus. He was sent to Walter Reed medical hospital for experimental treatment where he stayed for three days.

LA Lakers win NBA title - The Los Angeles Lakers led by Lebron James beat the Miami Heat in

Game Six of the NBA finals. This is the 17th win in franchise history tied for the most of all time

with the Boston Celtics.

LA Dodgers win the World Series - The Los Angeles Dodgers win the World Series. They beat

the Tampa Bay Rays in 6 games. This was their seventh World Series title.

The San Francisco sky is blanketed orange from all the smoke caused by the raging wildfires

Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate winning their seventh World Series

November 2020

COVID Cases Skyrocket - The United States records 10 million COVID cases and 237,000

deaths.

Biden/Harris Wins Presidential elections - Joseph R Biden Jr. was elected the 46th President of

the United States of America on November 7th 2020, defeating incumbent President Donald J.

Trump. His birth state of Pennsylvania put him over the necessary 270 electoral votes needed to win. His running mate senator Kamala Harris of California will be the 49th Vice President in

American history. Her election is history making because she will be the first woman, first

African American, and first person of Asian descent to fill the role.

Trump makes false election claims - Almost immediately after Biden was projected the winner

of the Presidential election, President Donald Trump made false and unsubstantiated claims of mass widespread voter fraud. Trump campaign lawyers waged all out legal warfare seeking

recounts in states that Trump lost to Biden narrowly like Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

None of these lawsuits seemed to matter however, because they were either thrown out because of lack of evidence or isolated incidents that couldn't affect the results of the election.

Jeopardy host Alex Trebek dies - Legendary game shows host Alex Trebek passed away at the age of 80 after fighting a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Diego Maradona dies - Legendary Argentinian soccer player and World Cup Champion Diego

Maradona passed away at the age of 60 from a heart attack.

December 2020

Vaccine Approval- On December 2nd The United Kingdom became the first country to approve the Pfizer-Biotech vaccine for COVID -19. America also began vaccinating people on December 14th.

President Elect Joe Biden and Vice President Elect Kamala Harris celebrate their election win with supporters in Wilmington, Delaware

Electoral College votes for Biden - On December 14th after a whole month of falsely claiming

the election was rigged President Trump was handed his final loss as the electoral college met to

certify Joe Biden's victory. Biden won the election with 306 electoral votes to Trump’s 232.