As the 2000s come to a close, it’s time to look back at the events that defined the first decade of the new
millennium. –todd williams
- 10. Jan 1, 2000: The Y2K
Scare
The new millennium brought with it a
bevy of doomsday conspiracy theories, but then it was revealed that the digital practice of using an abbreviated two-digit number for years as opposed to four
(i.e. ‘99’ instead of ‘1999’) might result in significant problems with technology around the globe. The threat to both digital (computer-related) and non-digital documentation and
data storage threw the government and general population into overdrive
worrying about how to prepare for the impending catastrophe. Government legislation was passed to prevent computer grid crashes and citizens stocked up on things
like water and light bulbs in fear of nationwide blackouts. And when the clock
struck midnight on January 1,
of course … nothing happened.
- March 24, 2002: Denzel
and Halle Take Home Oscars
The Academy Awards have a long
history of featuring very little diversity among the winners of its most
prestigious awards, but, on this night, Denzel Washington (Training Day) became
the first African American man to win Best Actor since Sidney Poitier in 1963
and Halle Berry (Monster’s Ball) became the first African American woman
to ever win Best Actress. In the years that have followed, Jamie Foxx, Forest
Whitaker, Morgan Freeman, and Jennifer Hudson have won Oscars in major acting
categories, with Don Cheadle, Viola Davis, Terrence Howard, Ruby Dee, Will
Smith, Thandie Newton, Sofie Okenedu and Taraji P. Henson having been
nominated.
- April 16, 2007: The
Virginia Tech Massacre
At around 7:15 a.m. in West Ambler Johnston Hall on the campus
of Virginia Tech, Sueng Hui-Cho, a mentally unstable undergrad student shot and
killed Emily J. Hilscher and Ryan C. Clark. Cho then changed clothes, discarded
his cell phone and hard drive and went to the post office to mail a video to
NBC News. He then returned to campus, went to the heavily-populated Norris Hall
and chained entrances shut. He proceeded to shoot students and faculty,
killing 30 more people and wounding 17 before committing suicide. The massacre
was the largest peacetime killing in U.S.
history and prompted a national debate about school safety, gun laws, and the
treatment of the mentally handicapped.
June 25, 2009: The
Death of Michael Jackson
Late in the afternoon, it was
reported online that pop superstar Michael Jackson had been rushed to
the hospital after suffering a heart attack. A few hours later, the Los Angeles
Times confirmed that the man who had recorded Thriller and had been
arguably the biggest star on the planet for the past 30 years had died. At age
50, Michael Jackson died leaving behind a legacy of great art and great
controversy. But as news spread of his passing, the emotional reaction across
the globe was awe-inspiring. Popular news and gossip websites crashed due to
the mass of traffic and in cities everywhere from Harlem
to Bucharest, people took to the
streets in an outpouring of grief for the passing of the legendary King of Pop.
- May 17, 2004 Massachusetts
Becomes 1st U.S. State to Legalize Gay Marriage
Following a highly controversial
decision from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
that ended the heterosexuals-only restriction in the state’s marriage law, the Bay
State opened a new chapter in
American history. Same sex couples camped out outside the Cambridge City Hall,
and at the stroke of midnight began cheering what was considered a
momentous occasion in the decades-long struggle for gay rights.
However, social
conservatives were galvanized by what took place in Massachusetts
sparking a heated debate in state legislatures across the country concerning
gay marriages. A number of groups organized in support of a federal
constitutional amendment to outlaw the practice of allowing gay people to marry They also fought for amendments in a number of states that would stop other courts from following Massachusettgs’
lead. The debate continues.
