Thursday 10 December the American weekly Time, like every year since 1927 aviator Charles Lindbergh was chosen, will reveal the Person of the Year of 2020. A troubled year that we are leaving behind, and that Time itself, dedicating a cover to it, defined as the worst ever: it will therefore not be surprising if to happen to Greta Thunberg, winner in 2019, will be a person (or a category of people) linked to the Covid-19 health emergency. Moreover, the magazine has been more sensitive to social and environmental issues for some years: after having awarded prizes for a long time mainly to politicians (and almost always to men: the first woman was Angela Merkel in 2015), Time cleared customs in 2011 the figure of “protester”, referring to the Arab Spring rebels; in 2014 the "fighters of Ebola"; in 2017 the "silence breakers", the women who broke their silence and reported sexual harassment; and last year the very young Swedish environmentalist.
This time too, it could be not a person but a category who wins: among the nominations related to Covid and in fact, considered among the favorites are the "essential workers", the heroes on the front line in hospitals, private facilities and homes for the elderly. Doctors and health personnel, repeatedly celebrated (but also questioned, unfortunately) in recent months, actually deserve recognition: in Italy alone, there have already been over 200 deaths among doctors and nurses since the beginning of the pandemic. Another candidate closely linked to Covid is Anthony Fauci, the US immunologist who in recent months has been one of the symbols of the fight against the virus, so much so that he was called by President Donald Trump to be part of the task force dedicated to tackling the emergency. In this role he stood out above all for having often contradicted or corrected the delusional statements made by the tycoon, who then fired him. Now Fauci has been rehabilitated by Biden and he could be the most representative figure of this 2020.
Among the other nominations stand out that of Black Lives Matter activists: 2020 was unfortunately also the year of George Floyd and the explosion of social and racial tensions in the United States. Furthermore, this movement, supported by many entertainment and sports stars, was also in some way decisive for Joe Biden's victory in the presidential elections, given that he was able to mobilize the African-American community to vote, obviously opposed to Trump's re-election . In line with this dynamic there would also be the candidacy of LeBron James: the NBA champion has not only won the title with the Los Angeles Lakers, but has long been engaged in political and social battles and this year he launched the movement More Than A Vote, precisely to finance the opening of polling stations in the suburbs and in the most isolated and disadvantaged realities. Speaking of NBA basketball, the list also includes Adam Silver, the boss of the league, who managed to create the perfect "bubble" to complete the tournament in full emergency. However, it is unlikely that he will even be considered the character of the year.
The reconfirmation of Pope Francis and Greta Thunberg, already winners of the award and again in the lot of eligible candidates, should also be excluded. The same Donald Trump is re-nominated, after being man of the year in 2016, when he was sensationally elected to the White House. With him the inevitable crowd of politicians: there is obviously his successor Biden, but also Putin, Erdogan, Xi Jinping, even Bolsonaro, Angela Merkel again and then the new wave of African American protagonists of the US political scene: the vice president in pectore Kamala Harris, pasionaria socialist Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, Georgia activist Stacey Abrams. Speaking of African Americans also pay attention to Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton, who in 2020 became the most successful driver ever, overtaking Michael Schumacher. Instead, speaking of female political figures, the Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern is also in the running, now known throughout the world as a champion of civil rights, tolerance and for her management of the emergency.
Who else could win? In the list of nominees there is not even an Italian and only a footballer: however, it is neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor Leo Messi, nor the recently passed away Diego Armando Maradona, but of the Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford. The champion-activist this year launched a social campaign by collecting one million signatures against a provision by the executive, which had rejected the proposal to administer free meals to UK students in economic difficulty. The result is that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been forced to backtrack and allocate almost 200 million euros to tackle this problem. Rashford has also made a personal effort to distribute free meals to communities in need. His proclamation would certainly be more exciting than that of Jeff Bezos: in 2020, would it make sense to reward the man who became the richest in the world (and still much richer) also thanks to the pandemic? Better, at that point, Prince Harry and his wife Megan, both in the lot for having given up their privileges.
