How much did North Carolina hate 2020? More than just about any other state, data show
If you can’t wait for 2020 to be over, you’re not alone.
North Carolina ranked No. 5 on a nationwide list of “states that hated 2020 the most,” a new report finds.
While it may not be surprising for people to have negative feelings about a year filled with a global pandemic and a contentious presidential election, the team at the spreadsheet website someka.net created a map to show which U.S. states that had the most negative feelings about this year.
To come up with the rankings, the website says it studied Twitter location data to examine more than 900,000 online posts, hashtags and keyword phrases that included the words “2020 is the worst” and “horrible year.”
Overall, results show the state with the most hatred toward 2020 is Michigan. Rounding out the top five are Virginia at No. 2; Indiana at No. 3 and Kentucky at No. 4.
Like other parts of the country, North Carolina experienced a year marked with hardships and unrest. Here’s a look back.
▪ North Carolina announced its first known coronavirus infection in March, the same month the state started to shut down businesses to help stop the disease’s spread. By May, more than 1 million people in the state had filed for unemployment benefits, The News & Observer reported.
▪ In the spring, protests erupted across North Carolina as people called for justice and police reform.
The demonstrations followed the death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died in Minneapolis police custody. Four officers were charged in connection with his death.
▪ Amid renewed calls for change this spring and summer, more than a dozen Confederate monuments were removed or relocated from places where they had stood for decades in North Carolina, McClatchy News reported.
▪ In November, millions of voters in the state submitted ballots in person and by mail to weigh in on who they wanted to represent them as president, U.S. senator, governor and other positions. (President Donald Trump won North Carolina.)
▪ So far, December has seen the most coronavirus-related deaths during the pandemic.
