Why 2020 & 1968 are Important

 

 "Damian Lillard at the Black Lives Matter march in Portland" by Matthew Almon Roth is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0

Last week we had an assignment about key moments that defined 1968. The events that took place in this year was really critical for America on how it would be defined for decades. As these events took place I started seeing a connection between 1968 and 2020. The way both of these years just screamed disaster. They shared very similar moments but also had very different ones. There was a bad main disaster that everyone agreed was awful. For 2020 its the killer Coronavirus, and for 1968 it was the cold war that if invoked enough could end all life. Both of these had dramatic effects on everyday human life. In 68 you were trained how to deal with a nuclear attack, you would have this fear on you every day that it could be your last. In 2020 because of the virus, millions of people had to apply for unemployment, as well as social distancing became a norm. Other disasters such as horrific death of a huge figures such as the beloved Robert Kennedy (who was said to be the next president), and 

Doctor Martin Luther King, as well as basketball legend Kobe                                                                                                                                           "Martin Luther King, Jr. 1964 (source: 

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Bryant, and famous black actor Chadwick Boseman.

 Although different, a very similar event that occurred between these two was the protesting for racial injustice. These protest were so strong that they managed to go to mainstream media and be spoken about by everything culture related whether it was music, sports, films, politics, and television. Both years had a very questionable president making decision that the majority of people disagreed on. President LBJ decision on pushing for war in Vietnam that would kill thousands of Americans, and President Trump wanting to reopen the country during a pandemic that would kills thousands of Americans.I don't want to view this as a competition on what was the worst year. I think a better way to look at it is how big of an impact both of these years had for decades to come.