The Year in Review – 2020 Edition

The bushfire crisis in Australia was one of the worst fires seen in modern history. The fires ravaged throughout all of Australia and burned a total of 12.6 million hectares. Official sources estimated that a total of one billion animals were affected by the fires. The size of these fires was unprecedented and devastated millions of people.

Today, the affected areas are healing, and the trees are quickly regenerating. Mother nature has a strange way of working, but many scientists agree that climate change will exacerbate events like bushfires. Future bushfires may be worse than the ones we saw this year.

Kobe Bryant’s death shocked the world. For almost 20 years, Kobe “Bean” Bryant, also known as Black Mamba, provided many millions of NBA fans with premiere basketball entertainment. He retired in 2016 with a bang, scoring 60 points against the Utah Jazz.

The news of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gigi Bryant dying in a helicopter crash was unexpected. After retirement, Kobe was a successful investor and philanthropist who was active in his local community and the basketball world. His death sparked an outpouring of support and love across the globe. He is considered one of the greatest basketball players.

The 2020 Super Bowl game between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers was a fierce contest of two great teams. As is tradition, the halftime show was an extravagant showing with the world’s biggest celebrity names. This year, two Latina superstars, Jennifer Lopez and Shakira, joined forces to provide the world with red hot entertainment.

The show was sparkly and flashy, with expensive costumes and intricate choreography. Many marveled that two iconic women who were considered “past their prime” came together to perform an exciting and dynamic Super Bowl halftime show. They were joined on stage by other Hispanic stars such as Bad Bunny and J Balvin.

At this point, COVID-19 needs no introduction. It is believed the virus has been active since last fall, and the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus to be a pandemic on March 11, 2020. This created massive panic among the general population and governments alike.

The declaration of a pandemic meant that governments had to take strict and swift action to prevent the virus’s spread. In March, Italy, China, and South Korea were some of the worst countries, and the respective countries worked tirelessly to contain the outbreak. As we all know, the virus continued to spread, and today many countries are still in bad condition.

At the beginning of 2020, social media was abuzz with talk about Netflix’s documentary, “Tiger King.” Memes about the show spread like wildfire, and the only names you would hear were Carol Baskin and Joe Exotic. This wasn’t the first time a Netflix show became a sensation, but Tiger King became larger than life.

The show was a captivating narrative about the trade of exotic animals in America and created an important discussion about animal rights. Since the show’s release, the controversy surrounding the documentary’s validity only added fuel to the fire. As the months passed, Tiger King faded into the shadows and remains a cultural landmark of 2020.

Tik Tok surpassed 2 billion downloads back in April, and the app has continued to rise in popularity. Initially, Tik Tok was marketed towards a younger audience, where kids could make fun videos of them dancing and having a good time. Eventually, the app morphed into a social media powerhouse for all age groups.

There has been a lot of controversy surrounding Tik Tok, with a few countries banning the app due to security reasons. News of governments trying to censor the app only proved to make it even more popular. Today, Tik Tok is a cultural phenomenon and a reflection of the times we live in digitally.

The pandemic required all brick-and-mortar casinos to close their doors to prevent the virus’s spread. It hurt the gambling industry, as all of their revenue was now suddenly gone. With no foot traffic, casinos all around the world could not earn any money. It also led to a substantial increase in the online gambling industry. 

For those who wanted to gamble, online casinos were the most logical answer to their problems. Websites like Wild Casino and BetOnline suddenly became the primary choice for many North American gamblers, and traditional brick-and-mortar casino operators like MGM struggled.

Civil unrest had been brewing in America for some time before George Floyd’s untimely passing, but the police brutality shown in the video was the straw that broke the camel’s back for many. Upon news of George Floyd’s death, protests broke out across the US, and supplemental news coverage turned the protest global.

Many protesters demanded police institutions’ defunding and outlined the steps civilians wanted to make them feel safer in their communities. Black communities were adamant in asking their local governments to hold relevant police departments accountable for police brutality. Black Lives Matter.

The extended closure of Las Vegas casinos and resorts meant disaster for the city, as most of its revenue comes from tourism and gambling-related activities. Las Vegas casinos scrambled to open as soon as it was deemed safe by Nevada governor Steve Sisolak. 

The reopening of casinos looked significantly different from what it was pre-pandemic. Social distancing rules were stringent, and masks were required for all entrants. Although there are continued safety concerns with being indoors, casinos ensure that they keep their environment sterilized and safe for players.

In November, the most recent U.S. presidential election proved to be the most popular and impactful election in history. Scores of people came out in record numbers to vote for their preferred candidate. This election was also the most divisive, as protests, fights, and conflicts broke out between opposing party supporters.

Eventually, Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, beat Trump in both popular vote and electoral count. He will enter the White House on January 20, 2021.