Paving The Path Of Reconstruction

The world needed 2020. As controversial as that sounds, this past year brought up many topics in the United States, societally and governmentally, that need to be readdressed and rethought. Although it was pretty sucky on the surface, 2020 had some silver linings as it will pave the path for 2021 and the change to come in these next few years.

First and foremost, the world saw a horrendous pandemic sweep across each continent. Millions have died and there is not anything to really celebrate in that regard.

But, as The Washington Posts states in the article “20 good things that happened in 2020,” the incredible speed and cooperation that the scientific community exerted was astounding as they raced to find a vaccine. In under a year the United States created a vaccine, with thousands risking their health to test it.

And, there are amazing stories that come from survivors. Catherine Park doesn’t fail to mention Major Lee Wooten, who survived COVID-19 at the ripe old age of 103 in her article “WWII veteran discharged after beating COVID-19, just in time for 104th birthday.”

Along with that, nurses and doctors finally got a lot of the recognition they deserved, with cities lining their windows with colorful hearts to show support, or entire apartment complexes clapping when shifts rotated at the hospital.

This past year was one of great connection and reconnection.

With the rise of Zoom, Google Meets, and other video chat apps in quarantine, people all around the world have a much easier time communicating and spending time together.

“Good news prevails: 100 positive things that happened in 2020 (so far),” published by USA Today, has an entire list that points out some inspiring and uplifting things that happened in this past year, including: John Kransinski’s viral “Some Good News” channel on Youtube, which helped spread happy news and remind everyone that not everything is terrible all of the time.

In May, the United States saw an incredible show of civil power. With the horrific death of George Floyd, the entire country took to the streets to protest police brutality and call awareness to the Black Lives Matters movement.

Dozens of documentaries quickly grew popular as people searched for a better understanding of systemic racism and how staying ignorant and silent is enforcing that behavior. It was truly outstanding to see countless communities rally for equity and eventual equality.

Of course, as the year wrapped up, the election took the entire world by storm and forced people to do their civic duty and pay attention to politics. With a record breaking 66.3 percent of eligible voters tuning in and casting their opinions, politics has become a oftenly discussed topic, even at the dinner table. News, social media and conversations were riddled with political talk as the date drew closer to the election.

Granted, waiting for the results became a little tense, and the confusing misinformation made the process a whole puddled mess. However, people were able to sift through, and the United States saw the most involvement in the government than it has in a century.

The past year sucked, sure, but it was much needed and definitely is a step, although difficult, towards the right direction and further growth for the entire world and humanity.