Defining Moments of the Decade: WTF, 2010s

2015: JUST DO IT

Actor Shia LaBeouf delivers an intense motivational speech

Source: “Just Do It” Full Motivational Speech HD – Shia LaBeouf #INDRODUCTIONS |
Rattacko

Shia LaBeouf released a 31-minute motivational speech that spurred into a series of internet memes and parodies in May 2015.

According to Vox, the video was a collaborative art project by LaBeouf,  Nastja Säde Rönkkö, Luke Turner, and fine arts students at Central Saint Martins in London. Each monologue was written by a student.

The “Just Do It” portion that blew up online was written by Joshua Parker, a 2015 fine arts BA who was particularly enthusiastic about athletic culture at the time.

Joshua Parker’s portion of the viral Shia LaBeouf art project

Source: #introductions | Joshua

SCOTUS Defends Same-Sex Marriage

In Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in a 5-4 decision the Fourteenth Amendment protects the right to marry as a fundamental liberty for same-sex marriages, too, according to Oyez.

“Judicial precedent has held that the right to marry is a fundamental liberty because it is inherent to the concept of individual autonomy, it protects the most intimate association between two people, it safeguards children and families by according legal recognition to building a home and raising children, and it has historically been recognized as the keystone of social order,” Oyez explained.

“The exclusion of same-sex couples from the right to marry violates the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.”

Obergefell v. Hodges | Oyez

Caitlyn Jenner on the Cover, No Longer Undercover

Caitlyn Jenner made her transition public on the cover of Vanity Fair’s June 2015 issue.

“Jenner had actually gone through various stages of transition once before, in the mid- and late 1980s,” the Vanity Fair article says. “He took hormones that resulted in breast growth and had his beard removed through an incredibly painful two-year regimen of electrolysis that he withstood without any medication because ‘pain is kind of, for me, part of the pain for being me … this is what you get for being who you are. Just take the pain.'”

Rumors had started circulating, so Jenner began living in a one-bedroom house in Malibu in “almost total seclusion” during her initial transition in the ’80s.

However, Jenner feared what the reaction might be to her transition, so she stopped the process in the late ’80s.

About 30 years later, Caitlyn proceeded with the transition and was “finally free” by embracing her complete journey in Vanity Fair.

Two months before making the cover of Vanity Fair, Caitlyn had opened up about her struggles with gender identity in an interview with Diane Sawyer.

Amtrak Derails

Eight passengers lost their lives and 185 others were hospitalized when eastbound Amtrak passenger train 188 derailed in Philadelphia, Pa. on May 12, 2015, says the National Transportation Safety Board.

The train had been going 106 mph as it entered the Frankford Junction curve, where the speed limit is 50 mph.

In response, Amtrak installed inward-facing cameras on its current fleet of ACS-64 locomotives, implemented speed enforcement at those curves, and implemented Positive Train Control on all of its property in the Northeast Corridor.

Pope Francis Visits the United States

Pope Francis visited the United States from Sept. 22 through Sept. 27, 2015, stopping at the Andrew Airforce Base, the White House, New York City, and Philadelphia during his trip, the United States Embassy reported.

“The President invited him and more importantly, in the context of that invitation, the dynamic, the personal interaction, was more than warm; they hit it off on a number of issues including, I think, migration, poverty, exclusion, and people falling through the cracks,” said Ambassador Ken Hackett in an interview with America Magazine. ” As soon as we were let in immediately afterwards you could feel the atmosphere in the room was very positive.”

Hotline Bling

“Hotline Bling” by Drake music video

Source: Drake – Hotline Bling | Drake

Drake released the music video for his single “Hotline Bling” on Oct. 26, 2015, which inspired countless internet memes, gifs, and parodies.

The single spent 45 weeks on the charts and peaked at #2 on Oct. 24, 2015, Billboard reports.

Paris Terror Attacks

130 lives were lost and 494 individuals were wounded during the Paris terror attacks that occurred on Nov. 13 and Nov. 14, 2015, CNN reported.

The attackers were armed with rifles and explosives at six targeted locations in Paris, which ISIS claimed responsibility for.

Continue to 2016 –>