Images by Sammi Cardoso
This post is in loving memory of Brian D. Murphy. He was personally my greatest loss in 2016. He was a bleeding liberal, a staunch feminist, a gay rights advocate who once called me from the 2004 Republican National Convention chanting “we say no Bush must go” with other protesters. He’s not physically with us anymore but his unmatchable energy, kindness and laughter is a legacy that will never die.
By Leana Pardo
With the start of a new year, everyone is optimistic and jovial. When 2016’s spirit declined rapidly, it annihilated us all. Memes began circulating the Internet poking fun of 2016. It brought light to a confusing and an appalling year. With the death of iconic staples of American culture like Maurice White, Prince, David Bowie, Muhammad Ali, George Michael, Janet Reno, & Carrie Fisher—just to name a few—to electing Donald Trump to govern the U.S, we can easily agree that 2016 was one hot mess.
The jaw-dropping news started early January when a state of emergency was issued for Flint, Michigan. The city’s water supply had been tested for an elevated percentage of lead that had been harming the residents for over a year. The issue has yet to be resolved while we move into 2017!
In February, American conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonio Scalia passed away at 79. The famous judge who once said, “Get over it” after the Bush vs. Gore election has still not been replaced. The Republican-held Congress has since refused to hold hearings to confirm President Obama’s choice.
The powerhouse politician, Senator Bernie Sanders, 75, started a revolution, which received overwhelming support from the millennial generation. The nation watched Sanders become a political superstar as he ran a campaign that raised millions of dollars through small contributions. His democratic and socialist policies resonated with Americans causing stiff competition for Hillary Clinton.
Although Sanders fought a good fight, the Democratic nomination soon went to Hillary Clinton who became the first woman in American history to be nominated for a major U.S. political party. During her campaign, Clinton struggled when America discovered she had been using her personal server while on duty as Secretary of State. Her campaign did not recover from this mishap.
Way to the right (pun intended), Donald Trump secured the GOP nomination by indoctrinating and promising to make America great again. Trump tapped into an audience the Clinton campaign and supporters often criticized and overlooked during the campaign. He built a hateful platform on promises like building a wall to keep immigrants out of the country and planning a Muslim registry.
In June, we learned of the tragic shooting in Orlando, FL, at a gay nightclub, Pulse, leaving 49 people killed and 53 injured. The gunman who later died pledged allegiance to ISIS. This was considered the deadliest shooting in modern American history, which has left many desensitized to gun violence and mass shootings in America. 
In early July, the country was heartbroken after watching footage of African-American, Philando Castile, get fatally shot at a routine traffic stop in front of his wife and four-year-old daughter. Along with Philando Castile, Terence Crutcher, Alton Sterling, Carnell Snell Jr., and Gregory Gunn also fell to their death at the release of a bullet from the hands of law enforcement. These tragedies were added to the ongoing list of unarmed black men killed by police. These are just a few names on this list from 2016.
On July 7th in Dallas, TX, a peaceful protest was coming to an end when a lone gunman fatally shot five police officers and wounded nine heightening tension in America between Black Lives Matter supporters and the police.
On a lighter note, there were wins for progressive politics. In April, California became the first state to raise the minimum wage over the next six years to $15 an hour. New York signed a similar minimum wage bill leaving hopes for the future. In November, California also legalized the recreational use of marijuana while also signing legislation and the Paris agreement, which pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% in the next century. The Paris agreement was signed in April 2016 and became effective November 2016. Side note: President- Elect Trump vows to withdraw from this agreement. Moral of the story: let’s move to California or to another country.
Over 300 Native American tribes joined together at Standing Rock, North Dakota in one of the largest Native American protest in American history. The tribes protested the Dakota Access Pipeline that was set to disrupt their water supply. In December, the Army Corps announced that the pipeline would be rerouted and construction would halt.
Undoubtedly the most shocking event was the election of Donald Trump for the next president of the United States. Hillary Clinton historically won over 2.5 million popular votes while Trump won the Electoral College vote, which only happened four other times in history. The tweet-crazed-politically-incorrect reality star promised anti-establishment but since the election has appointed a billionaire pro-establishment-infested cabinet.
Image by Leana Pardo
On December 19th, the Electoral College had their last chance to cast their final vote faithfully or faithlessly to officiate the presidency. During this time, many non-Trump supporters used this opportunity to declare democracy and exercise their rights. Oddly enough, a few days before the election, the FBI re-opened the doors to the email scandal adding to Hilary’s downfall. In retrospect, a few days before the Electoral College casted their final vote, the CIA presented evidence that there was Russian interference in the election. Many argued that Hillary’s email scandal did not provide enough evidence while the evidence of Russian interference was more prevalent to deny Trump the presidency. Despite the demand for investigation, electors voted faithfully in Trump’s favor leaving Hillary yet again at a loss. 2017 seems foggy and unexpected, but the best can be hoped for after January 20th.
Our hearts went out to the people of Eastern Aleppo who suffered and continue to suffer a detrimental civil war. Citizens of Aleppo posted videos on social media outlets describing their horrific situations while declaring their soon-to-be death in efforts to seek help. While Americans argued over allowing refugees in and Russia’s involvement in the war, we saw a fragile five-year-old, Omran Daqneesh, sit in an ambulance vehicle and wipe blood and soot from his tiny face. We watched mothers and fathers cry searching desperately for their children buried in rubble and The White Helmets risk their lives to save them.
2016 was undeniably a rough year filled with great loss, but there are two options in the aftermath. We either: 1) Sulk and quit or 2) Continue and persevere. When you experience loss, your world tilts and your senses change. You begin to see things differently. Your eyes catch a different perspective of the world. You take deeper breaths. You feel things more intensely, and you listen differently. You start hearing the subtle things you may have missed before. A loss of any kind changes your perspective. And you can either shut down or grow from it.
As we leave 2016 behind us, we can choose to sit in fear waiting for the next mass shooting and/or anticipating the worst from a new administration. Alternatively, we can choose to continue and push through the grief. From my experience with grief, the latter is proving more effective. Maybe 2016 was America’s wake-up call. Maybe we needed our senses shaken up. It’s time to see the world from a different lens and channel the energy of the ones we lost and the ones we lost during political races to make for a better 2017.
Phoenix 