Corrections, repudiations, and revisions: how computing made 2020 a year for change

2020 has been a strange year for many reasons. By February of 2020, the Pandemic was already impacting many parts of the world, and by April, a majority of human lives across the globe were well and truly disrupted by the Covid-19 virus. Some might remember this period as that time when hand sanitizer and toilet paper couldn't be obtained, even at gouged prices. Others may remember this past summer as the time when violence against Black people at the hands of the police achieved a visibility that forced all of us in the US, like it or not, to stop and take note. By the end of the summer headlines heralded what some thought might be the end of the modern university system as colleges and universities across the country announced mass lay-offs and even the dismantling of longstanding majors and departments. Even those with tenure found themselves suddenly without a job. By early fall, the death toll in the U.S. had slowed to the point that schools considered reopening, bars and restaurants unshuttered their doors, and house parties reappeared, if they ever disappeared to begin with. As the positive counts began to surge again, the only thing spreading faster than the virus was misinformation on social media. We end the year in the US with a new President Elect, an emergency approved vaccine, and hope. So many tumultuous events have occurred in this single year that it behooves us to pause for a minute or ten and reflect on what we've learned about the role we want computing to play moving forward.