The A-Z of the 2010s

New Statesman writers reflect on the decade’s definitive political and cultural trends.

A fantastic New Year Fireworks show in London in 2016.

The events of the 2010s unfolded with dizzying speed. The UK experienced three Conservative governments since 2010, a coalition agreement, three prime ministers and two referendums. Political turbulence disrupted democracies across the world: populist leaders toppled incumbents and wars were fought in Syria and Iraq. New political movements spilled onto the streets as people demanded climate action and confronted racism, misogyny and gender discrimination.

But it’s not just politics that defined the last decade. Our culture, too, has changed beyond recognition. Instagram, which was launched in 2010, shaped our identities and aspirations. Streaming platforms like Netflix and Spotify transformed how we consume film and music. New genres came to the fore. Grime became mainstream and pop merged with R&B. In anxious times, we turned to personal essays and memoir.

With a month to go until 2020, the New Statesman’s A-Z reflects on the political and cultural trends that reshaped the world during the decade when time sped up.

***

A is for Avocado

Ever since millennials were accused of spending too much on brunch, the green fruit has become the flashpoint for a generational divide.

Anoosh Chakelian

B is for Black Lives Matter

The hashtag first appeared in 2012, after the death of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed African-American teenager. The movement continued to gain traction throughout the decade, organising hundreds of protests against multiple deaths of black people at the hands of US police.

Stephen Bush