The torment of the pandemic has been exacerbated by heightened awareness of institutional racism and police brutality. The murder by Minneapolis police of George Floyd a year ago sparked protests and outrage that engendered the destruction of monuments and memorials intrinsically tied to racial injustice.
The nation proved to be more fragmented than ever, as some of these public structures were legally removed, while others in states such as Alabama and North Carolina, with laws prohibiting the removal of monuments, were deliberately wrecked.