By Darsh Mirchandani
Time Magazine has a tradition of selecting a Person of the Year, which dates back to 1927 when Charles Lindbergh was named Man of the Year for his historic transatlantic flight. Last year, climate change activist Greta Thunberg was given this honor. Together, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have been named Person of the Year for 2020.
Biden defeated incumbent Donald Trump in a close presidential race after a grueling year. America has lost countless people from a raging pandemic, fought flames in the West, faced racial conflicts, and much, much more all in one year, and Biden and Harris are ready to pick up the pieces 2021. Their campaign message to unite the divided United States ultimately won over voters with the highest voter turnout of the century, according to Time Magazine.
“Unite the divided United States...”
Time chose Harris as well because she has made history as the first Black and Asian American woman to be vice president of the United States. She broke down barriers and is paving the way for more women and people of color to work their way up to lead the nation. With a younger, more diverse point of view, Harris has the potential to change the face of politics and accomplish what others could not before her.
Americans are hoping to see Biden and Harris make some positive change in the coming years, and they are planning to improve the country in the first 100 days in office, first focusing on the extremely devastating effects of the coronavirus.
Reproduced with permission from Pixabay
The president-elect and vice-president-elect have been named Person of the Year for 2020.
“These two people [Biden and Harris] have worked so hard despite their difficulties. They have managed to prepare themselves and rise to the occasion,” said seventh grader Gabriel Padilla.
However, the Time reader poll reveals that Biden and Harris were not the first pick for Person of the Year: the pair came in fifth place with 3.8% of the vote. In contrast, essential workers, which include nurses, doctors, grocery store workers, and many more won the topped the charts for the reader poll. In addition, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House’s leading infectious disease expert, came in second with 5% of the vote. Firefighters were in third place with 4.3% of the vote and Black Lives Matter activists came in fourth with 4% of the vote.
The comment section of the Time's Instagram was flooded with questions as to why COVID-19 front-liners were not chosen since the president-elect and vice president-elect have not even started their term yet.
“I personally believe Dr. Anthony Fauci and frontline healthcare workers should have received the Time’s Person of the Year 2020 award. During this pandemic, many nurses, doctors and healthcare workers put their families and their lives at risk,” said seventh grader Nuha Kotwal.
However, Time Magazine does not decide Person of the Year based on that vote.
“[We pick] the person or persons who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill, and embodied what was important about the year, for better or for worse,” said former Time Managing Editor Walter Isaacson.
Though the majority of people wanted frontline workers and Dr. Anthony Fauci to be named Person of the Year, that does not mean that Biden and Harris are undeserving of the title.
"Joe Biden and Kamala Harris give us hope that we can overcome this challenge that the pandemic has presented to us," said seventh grader Arnav Kohli.
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