Remember in 2020 when folks said it couldn’t get worse for Black folks? Between the COVID-19 pandemic, racial tension after the murder of George Floyd and President Donald Trump in the White House, it seemed like Black folks couldn’t catch a break… Now, here we are in 2025 and arguably the Black community is facing heavier problems.
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Attacks on the Voting Rights Act and targeted of Black people through the National Guard and heightened ICE presence are on everyone’s mind. If you don’t believe 2025 is even worse than 2020, take a look at the comparison yourself…
COVID-19 (2020)
The U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported the first case of COVID-19 on Jan. 18, 2020. Little did we know just how much the virus would change the world. 2020 reported the first global lockdown in recorded history, with millions of working people sent home for months while hundreds of thousands died from COVID.
National Guard (2025)
Trump promised to go use the military to expand on his mass deportation agenda last year, and in 2025, he’s making good on that promise. The president has sent the National Guard to at least 5 cities and plans to invade plenty more. The increase in Guard and ICE in cities like Washington, D.C. and Memphis have resulted in higher policing of Black and brown neighborhoods. Many American citizens have reported violent and unlawful interactions with ICE.
Final Year of Trump’s First Term (2020)
The year 2020 was the last of President Donald Trump’s first term. At the time, Gallup reported his approval rating at an average 49 percent– much better than his current 42-and-steadily-falling rating— but across the Black community, Trump’s rating consistently tanked. It probably had something to do with the 45th president’s controversial attempt to build a wall at the southern border, enact a travel ban and what many have considered Trump’s racist history.
First Year of Trump’s Second Term (2025)
Sure, it hasn’t officially been a full year since Trump stepped back into the Oval Office, but he has certainly left a mark already. He’s signed a record number of executive orders and even gutted several government agencies as he saw fit.
Black Lives Mater Protests (2020)
In May 2020, an unarmed Black man named George Floyd was killed by ex-officer Derek Chauvin. After his death was caught on viral video, an estimated 20 million people around the globe flooded the streets in protest to Floyd’s murder and other Black killings by police. At the time, the series of demonstrations became the largest in American history.
No Kings Day Protests (2025)
… That is until the No Kings Day protests happened in 2025. June 14 marked the 250th anniversary of the Army and the president’s 79th birthday. To celebrate, he organized a military parade that was met with national outrage. This ultimately led to the “No Kings Day” protests on June 14 and again on Oct. 18. The protests were reportedly the largest in American history, suggesting that more and more Americans are loudly opposing Trump and exercising their First Amendment right.
Economic Impact of COVID (2020)
The pandemic triggered “shock waves” throughout the world’s economy. It soon became the biggest global economic crisis in over a century. In the U.S., it’s estimated the pandemic cost the country $14 trillion, according to USC research. We are still recovering today.
The End of DEI (2025)
In Jan. 2020, the president signed off on an executive order ending diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) at the federal level. This, of course, set off a chain of events mostly shaped by companies and political systems’ interpretation of and compliance with Trump’s new decree. Hundreds of major brands immediately decided to end DEI altogether, some taking it far enough to fully condemn diversity completely.
The Rise of TikTok (2025)
While everyone was stuck on lockdown, the social media app TikTok started taking over the world. All of a sudden, millions of people around the global could connect in an innovative way, through art, recipes, sharing personal stories and giving advice, especially as it pertained to mental health.
The Rise of AI
Five years later and TikTok is still one of the world’s top media apps. But the rise of artificial intelligence is also seeing a rapid increase in practically all work fields. ChatGPT and other AI systems are also becoming wildly popular among everyday people.
Mental Health Issues (2020)
It’s safe to say most of us experience a collective trauma in 2020. You more than likely know someone who contracted COVID or unfortunately died from the virus. And with sickness, death and a global lockdown all plaguing society, we saw a mental crisis like never before in 2020 and the years following, according to the World Health Organization.
Voting Rights Issues (2025)
Of all of the civil rights-related cases brought before the U.S. Supreme Court this year, many concern voting rights, especially as it pertains to race and gender. The case of Louisiana v. Callais could potentially disenfranchise thousands of Black voters right before the 2026 midterms. It’s an effort birthed from Trump’s redistricting scheme.
Mass Deportation (2025)
Trump’s first term was largely shaped by his tough stance on immigration. He enacted a travel ban, started construction on a southern border wall, and repeatedly used foul language to deter migrants from coming into the country. In 2025, Trump has simply ramped up the exact same behavior.
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