WOW, that was fast!! It’s hard to believe but the year 2019 and this decade is only about a week away from coming to an end. So, in keeping with our yearly tradition, let’s take a look back at the year in review with the OK WASSUP! Top 10 Stories of 2019.
Current Events
For starters, let’s look back at the stories that didn’t quite make our list of the Top 10 but are still very deserving of an honorable mention.
For example, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was caught in blackface, while a secret Donald Trump whistleblower was caught up in the impeachment scandal. The Amazon forest burned and the Governor of Puerto Rico was forced to resign. The controversial Alabama abortion law and US-China trade war also dominated the news of 2019.
Lori Lightfoot became the first black female and first openly gay Mayor of Chicago. R Kelly staged his infamous interview with “CBS This Morning” host Gayle King. Additionally, the Michael Jackson film “Leaving Neverland” and the gripping story of the Central Park 5 “When They See Us” left us on the edge of our seats.
Still, despite their lock on public attention, those were not the Top 10 Stories Of 2019. So, what stories made the list, you ask? Let’s take a look:
.
10.) British Royal Family
The British royal family dominated the news in 2019 with positive and not-so-positive news.
Princess Diana’s boys William and Harry feuded with each other while their wives were said to not be on speaking terms and only maintaining public pleasantries. The good news is that Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, gave birth to their first child (a baby boy). However, the royal brothers, who were once inseparably close, appear to be going in totally different directions.
.
9.) Democratic presidential debates/contest
In one of the largest and yet most lackluster political contests in recent memory, Democrats began the task of running for President of the United States.
Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and others like him never had a chance. Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas and Sen. Kamala Harris of California started off strong, then petered in the process.
The nomination still appears to be former Vice-President Joe Biden’s to lose, however, South Bend, Indiana’s openly gay Mayor Pete Buttigieg is making a shocking come from behind presence in the final stretch.
.
8.) Beautiful Women Of Color
Yes, the world has spoken.
For the first time in history, Miss America, Miss USA, Miss Teen USA, Miss Universe, and Miss World were all beautiful black women. Finally, the world recognized the intrinsic beauty in melanin.
.
7.) Popeye’s Chicken Sandwich
There were nationwide lines out the door and around the block, fights, stabbings, and more when Popeye’s Chicken introduced a new limited edition chicken sandwich.
After regularly running out of the popular sandwich, Popeye’s ended the promotion early but brought it back as a regular offering once they figured out how to keep the sandwich in stock at their stores.
.
6.) El Paso, Gilroy, Dayton shootings
More people died because of America’s lax gun laws at a Walmart in El Paso, TX, at a Garlic Festival in Gilroy, CA, and at a bar in Dayton, OH.
When will someone in power grow the balls to take on the NRA and change the way guns are readily available and used to kill people in the US???
.
5.) Passages
Remembering those notable personalities we lost in 2019.
.
POLITICS:
Former Michigan Rep. John Dingell, former Indiana Sen. Richard Lugar, former Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran, former presidential candidate Ross Perot, former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, David Koch (billionaire GOP donor), Jacques Chirac (former Pres. of France), Rep. Elijah Cummings, former Rep. John Conyers, former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, former Gary, Indiana Mayor Richard Hatcher.
ENTERTAINMENT:
Daryl Dragon (Captian & Tenille), Carol Channing, Kay Ballard, R&B Singer James Ingram, Kristoff St. John, Albert Finney, Nathaniel Taylor (“Rollo” in SANFORD & SON), Luke Perry, John Singleton (Director),
Peggy Lipton, Doris Day, Tim Conway, Leon Redbone (singer/musician), Dr. John (New Orleans musician), Gloria Vanderbilt, Arte Johnson (“Laugh-In”), Cameron Boyce (Disney), Rip Torn (actor), Art Neville (The Neville Brothers), Hal Prince (Broadway producer/director), author Toni Morrison, Peter Fonda, Valerie Harper, Eddie Money, ABC’s Cokie Roberts, Jessye Norman (opera diva), Diahann Carroll, Rip Taylor, John Witherspoon (actor), René Auberjonois (actor), Caroll Spinney (Sesame Street puppeteer), Philip McKeon (actor), Danny Aiello.
OTHERS:
Herb Kelleher (Southwest Airlines founder), Karl Lagerfeld (designer), I.M. Pei (famed architect), Bart Starr (football great), Claus von Bulow, Lee Iacocca, Isabel Toledo (designer of Michelle Obama inaugural dress), T. Boone Pickens (oil tycoon), accused pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
.
4.) Mysterious Deaths in the Dominican Republic
To this day, no one is for sure what caused more than 2 dozen deaths of visiting tourists to the Dominican Republic. However, bootleg liquor containing embalming fluid (and other unregulated ingredients) is assumed as the culprit, since it’s cheap and “stretches” real liquor while creating a similar (yet often deadly) euphoria.
.
3.) Jussie Smollett
He was the star of the hit Fox nighttime drama “Empire” — until he was accused of staging a racist attack on himself by alleged MAGA hat-wearing Trump supporters carrying a noose in the dead of Chicago’s winter.
The stunt cost Smollett his job and he is currently still facing legal charges from the City of Chicago.
.
2.) The Mueller Report
The long-awaited Mueller Report that took more than a year and millions of dollars to construct came and went.
The public expected Special Investigator Robert Mueller and his team of some of the top legal minds in America to end the Donald Trump presidency with proof of a litany of scandals. Instead, the Mueller Report only provided a “suggestion” of where Democrats should direct themselves next in dealing with ‘The Donald.’
Or, in other words, the much-anticipated report turned out to be a great big dud!
.
And, rounding out #1 of the Top 10 Stories of 2019 is…
.
1.) Donald Trump Is Impeached
The Democratically-controlled US House of Representatives handed Donald J. Trump an exclusive prize that only 2 other presidents in US history have ever received: a formal impeachment.
The House voted along party lines to impeach Trump and to tarnish his reputation for the history books. However, with the GOP-led US Senate widely expected to acquit Trump and save his presidency once impeachment reaches the upper chamber of Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi seems intent on withholding the next phase from the Senate until Republicans agree to a fair trial.
So, what were your Top 10 Stories of 2019?
If this is something that is done annually then it’s a very good idea. I’d forgotten some of these stories from before. Very good job.