MeghanBartness

Trends play a big part in peoples’ everyday lives. They control what we wear, how we spend our time and money and what is popular. Trends come and go, and they shuffle through rapidly. From devious licks, the griddy dance, getting “Krissed” and BeReal, to Drunk Elephant, Rare Beauty, claw clips, mini Uggs and flare pants, 2022 was filled to the brim with trends.

Senior Allie Mohr describes trends as “a lot of people doing the same thing on social media so it makes other people want to do it. It’s like a popular dance on TikTok or a popular thing that’s going on like the ‘BeReal’ trend.”  

BeReal is an app that allows users to take a picture using the front and back camera at the same time. It’s supposed to give the user only two minutes a day to show the “real you,” otherwise the user posts late.

While trends play a big part in almost everyone’s lives, not all of them are fun and creative. Some of these trends can be harmful to your mental or physical health or involve consequences in your community. Mohr said, “the devious licks trend has been harmful because a lot of people got in trouble for it.”

Social media also plays a big role in how we perceive and adapt our lives to new trends. “You understand what the trends are because a lot of them take place on social media,” Mohr said. “Without that, I don’t think there would be very many trends.”

2022 has not only been big for trends, but also for world news. From tragic deaths and ends of eras, to the biggest sporting events of the year, 2022 was a year full of headlines and breaking news. 

On Feb. 24, Russia invaded Ukraine and started the biggest invasion in Europe since World War II. Russia sent troops into neighboring Ukraine for the start of what’s become a nearly year-old occupation. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin tried to justify the attack with claims that Ukraine was threatening Russia and being governed by “Nazis.” Ukrainian troops stopped Russia from taking Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, eventually forcing Russian troops to retreat back to the far east and southern parts of Ukraine.  

On Tuesday, May 24, a gunman stormed the campus of Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, killing 19 children and two teachers in the deadliest school shooting in the U.S. in nearly a decade. 

Investigative reports have concluded that officials failed to follow active shooter protocol when they waited more than an hour to confront the attacker inside a fourth-grade classroom. In October, Col. Steve McCraw, the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, acknowledged mistakes by officers but defended his agency, saying they “did not fail” Uvalde. 

The U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade on Friday, June 24, in what became one of the court’s most controversial decisions in decades. The court’s majority ruled in June that abortion is not a constitutional right, which led to abortion bans in more than a dozen states. 

Justice Clarence Thomas implied in a concurrent ruling that the court could review other constitutional rights, like same-sex marriage and access to hormone therapy.

Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning monarch in British history, died Sept. 8 after 70 years on the throne. She was 96 years old.  Her death sent shock waves around the world, as the monarch served as a constant, stabilizing force throughout England. Elizabeth’s son Charles was crowned King Charles III after 64 years as heir to the throne. 

A pro-democracy movement arose in Iran. Protests began in September when 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died while in custody of the country’s morality police. She’d been detained for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code. 

Protests have continued for months despite a deadly crackdown. Human Rights activists in Iran, the U.S.-based group that has been closely tracking the protests since they erupted, said 451 protesters and 60 security forces have been killed since the start of the unrest. They estimate more than 18,000 people have been detained. 

The 2022 World Cup took place in the Middle East for the first time in history. Argentina won its third World Cup title by beating France 4-2 in a penalty shootout after a 3-3 draw featuring two goals from the 35-year-old Lionel Messi and a hat trick by his opponent, France forward Kylian Mbappé.

Trends continue to affect our everyday lives, from what we consume on social media to our behavior towards others. Without trends defining our society, our world would look a lot different. We rely on world events to define the year.