The COVID-19 quarantine has been interrupted by the recent murders of three black citizens at the hands of police. The deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd represent a legacy of unjust racism, and have unleashed nationwide protests demanding police reform. Furthermore, emerging coronavirus data suggest a disproportionate burden of illness and death among racial and ethnic minority groups. As a result, the Black Lives Matter movement has become one of the most explosive trials of American racism in modern times. Despite this year's segregation surrounding the coronavirus and pending election, it is empowering to witness society unite to protect human rights.
 | |
|
It certainly has been an interesting year so far. It still feels like March in many ways, yet we are already halfway through June. The summer solstice is upon us, made apparent in Portland by peak rose season and long daylight hours. I have recently harvested the first berries and greens from my garden. The pharmacy workload at the hospital has been gradually ramping up, but I am looking forward to hitting the trails on my days off as the country cautiously begins to reopen.
What if 2020 isn't cancelled?
What if 2020 is the year we've been waiting for?
A year so uncomfortable, so painful, so scary, so raw--
that it finally forces us to grow.
A year that screams so loud, finally awakening us from our ignorant slumber.
A year we finally accept the need for change.
Declare change. Work for change. Become the change.
A year we finally band together, instead of
pushing each other further apart.
2020 isn't cancelled, but rather
the most important year of them all.
-Leslie Dwight
