Hard Truths: What we learned

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The murder of George Floyd and the protests that followed fueled hope that the U.S. might finally reckon with systemic racism. Instead, a backlash has even some once strong allies backtracking. 

Why it matters: A wave of proposed reforms rose up and crashed into the status quo bulkhead. Defund the police plans fizzled. Federal voting rights and police reform bills are stalled. But U.S. history shows the walls of inequality seldom collapse all at once. Instead, cracks emerge and with time turn into larger openings. 

Though sweeping plans to revamp law enforcement appear dead, for the first time some officers were convicted for use of excessive force, including the former officer who killed Floyd.

 Black, Latino, Asian American and Native American voters cast ballots in record numbers.

Activists toppled some statues once honoring former slaveholding Confederates and murderers of Indigenous people.

Details: The summer of 2020 saw millions across the U.S. take to the streets to demand that cities and the federal government radically change policing.

Multiracial, multiethnic demonstrators called for changes to laws protecting officers from prosecution over allegations of fatal excessive force. Often, those cases involved Black, Native American and Latino male victims. 

Demonstrations also called for eradicating racist symbols, from sports mascots to street names of known white supremacists. 

Puerto Ricans and the Latino community joined the Black Lives Matter protest standing in solidarity and seeking justice for victims of police brutality.

Puerto Ricans joined the Black Lives Matter protest in New York. Photo: Steve Sanchez/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

At first, unlikely allies like Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and white residents in small towns joined Black Lives Matter marches and calls to end systemic racism.

Navajo activists in Gallup, New Mexico, and Mexican Americans in Laredo, Texas, organized demonstrations in support of Black Lives Matter.

Yes, but: The ongoing pandemic and violent rhetoric from President Donald Trump, who falsely alleged BLM protesters were linked to Antifa, helped dampen support for racial justice demonstrations. 

Street violence also erupted in Kenosha, Wisconsin, after a video went viral showing Rusten Sheskey, a white police officer, shooting Jacob Blake, a Black man, multiple times in the back. 

A mom and his infant in a stroller walk thru a burned out used car parking lot in Kenosha, Wis., a day after a violent riot.

A mom and her child walk in a burned-out used car parking lot in Kenosha, Wis., a day after a deadly riot. Photo: Russell Contreras/Axios

Police unions fought back and began publicly supporting Republicans like Trump who vowed to fight policing reforms. That starkly divided support for Black Lives Matter along party lines.

Rising murder and violent crime rates in some major cities allowed police unions and conservatives to argue BLM demonstrations contributed to crime — despite lack of evidence to support that position. 

Don't forget: Following the 2020 election, a group led by Russell Vought, a White House budget director under Trump, began a campaign to rid discussions about racism and diversity from public schools under the pretext of attacking critical race theory — a graduate school concept that examines racial inequality baked into the U.S. legal system.

Flashback: After the U.S. fought an exhausting civil war over slavery and then emancipated enslaved people, the nation allowed Southern states to roll back civil rights and adopt Jim Crow laws that legalized segregation.

Following the Civil Rights Movement and President Lyndon Johnson's Great Society programs to tackle poverty, the nation turned to President Richard Nixon to elevate "law and order" over civil rights. 

Opponents of Critical Race Theory attend a Placentia Yorba Linda School Board discusses a proposed resolution to ban it from being taught in schools.

Opponents of critical race theory attending a school board meeting in Yorba Linda, Calif. Photo: Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

But, but, but: Some states, like Illinois and New Mexico, have passed sweeping police reform bills that banned chokeholds and required officers to wear body cameras.

And activists were quick to denounce and draw attention to a rise of anti-Asian American violence that resulted from the COVID pandemic. 

The intrigue: Voters in cities like New York supported moderates like Eric Adams, a Black former police captain and now mayor-elect, allowing them to emerge as new leaders over more progressive candidates who supported BLM proposals.

Some prosecutors stopped pursuing minor crimes amid a court backlog. 

What to watch: Whether the U.S. will again retreat from addressing systemic racism and ensuring equality for all Americans, regardless of race or ethnicity, in the name of "returning to normal."

1. The slow wheels of justice

A backlash has even some once strong allies backtracking.

Photo illustration: Maura Losch/Axios. Photo: Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

Hard Truths - What We Learned

The murder of George Floyd and the protests that followed fueled hope that the U.S. might finally reckon with systemic racism. Instead, a backlash has even some once strong allies backtracking. Why it matters: A wave of proposed reforms rose up and crashed into the status quo bulkhead. Defund the police<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text=" plans fizzled." data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/democrats-defund-police-reform-61dcf661-0024-4dfd-a709-6e8749c466a3.html" data-vars-content-id="997aca38-4c7b-41b7-a4b7-cd445e200e03" data-vars-headline="The slow wheels of justice" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/democrats-defund-police-reform-61dcf661-0024-4dfd-a709-6e8749c466a3.html" target="_self"> plans fizzled.</a> <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Federal voting rights" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/republicans-vote-manchin-voting-rights-bill-6e50b577-6546-4c0d-82f0-5dfa69e2c42a.html" data-vars-content-id="997aca38-4c7b-41b7-a4b7-cd445e200e03" data-vars-headline="The slow wheels of justice" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/republicans-vote-manchin-voting-rights-bill-6e50b577-6546-4c0d-82f0-5dfa69e2c42a.html" target="_self">Federal voting rights</a> and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="police reform" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/george-floyd-police-reform-negotiations-end-73b4d084-003d-4cfa-949b-fae070dfb759.html" data-vars-content-id="997aca38-4c7b-41b7-a4b7-cd445e200e03" data-vars-headline="The slow wheels of justice" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/george-floyd-police-reform-negotiations-end-73b4d084-003d-4cfa-949b-fae070dfb759.html" target="_self">police reform</a> bills are stalled. But U.S. history shows the walls of inequality seldom collapse all at once. Instead, cracks emerge and with time turn into larger openings.

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

Last year's racial reckoning led to dramatic, visible changes in professional sports  as teams ditched racist mascots while leagues pledged millions to support new social justice efforts and made improvements in hiring practices.

Why it matters: Some long-awaited changes have been realized, but both the sports world and society at large are still struggling to bridge the gap between cosmetic vs. real progress.

State of play: 2020's upheaval has already led to tangible change. The next, and perhaps most important step, is ensuring that momentum doesn't fade.

The NBA's new Social Justice Coalition, comprising a 15-person board with representatives from the league, ownership, players and coaches, lobbied for police reform, criminal justice reform and voting rights bills before Congress.

Those efforts have thus far stalled in the Senate with limited bipartisan support, but as the coalition's director James Cadogan tells Axios, that's only part of their mission. 

"Our mission is to raise awareness, educate and take meaningful action," says Cadogan. "Supporting those bills is part of that meaningful action, but ... I think our superpower, if we have one, is bringing more eyeballs onto issues and more people into consistent participation."

MLB committed up to $150 million over the next decade to the Players Alliance, aiding diversity initiatives including increasing participation among Black youth, providing professional development for Black people across all levels of baseball, and celebrating Black baseball history and culture.

MLB also made the long-overdue decision to elevate the historical Negro Leagues to major league status, and just this week the first Negro Leaguers since 2006 were elected to the Hall of Fame.

Native American mascots in Washington and Cleveland were ditched, and though the Braves' tomahawk chop remains, there is a growing conversation regarding its appropriateness.

Yes, but: Racism against athletes persists. Two months after winning Olympic gold, gymnastics breakout star Suni Lee was pepper sprayed and called slurs one night in Los Angeles by passengers in a passing car while she waited for a ride.

Diversity in hiring is improving, though some leagues are far ahead of others, and league offices tend to outpace their team-level counterparts.

The WNBA continues to be the standard-bearer, earning an "A+" from The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport's (TIDES) annual hiring report cards. 

The NBA, with an "A," isn't far behind. Its 16 head coaches of color this year matches an all-time high, while its 12 general managers and 52.7% of assistant coaches of color are both record highs.

But top management in other leagues still remains predominantly white. Just 4 of 30 MLB general managers, 4 of 32 NFL head coaches and 4 of 27 MLS team presidents or CEOs are people of color.

The bottom line: 2020's racial reckoning helped lay the groundwork for change decades in the making. Work still remains, but "there are clear signs that things are moving in the right direction for racial equality across sport," TIDES director Richard Lapchick tells Axios.

Go deeper: "The Day Sports Stood Still" trailer (YouTube)

Editor's note: This piece was updated to clarify that there is limited bipartisan support for bills on police reform, criminal justice reform and voting rights, but those efforts are currently stalled in the Senate.

2. Sports reckoning over racism

Teams ditched racist mascots while leagues pledged millions for new social justice efforts.

Illustrated collage of a hand inside of a football and baseball.

Last year&#x27;s racial reckoning led to dramatic, visible changes in professional sports as teams ditched racist mascots while leagues pledged millions to support new social justice efforts and made improvements in hiring practices.Why it matters: Some long-awaited changes have been realized, but both the sports world and society at large are still struggling to bridge the gap between cosmetic vs. real progress.

Republicans are betting that Democrats have gone too far in addressing systemic racism — so they're leaning into culture wars over school curriculum, college admissions, voting rights, hiring practices and policing.

Driving the news: These calculations are playing out in governor's races, in the battle for control of both chambers of Congress, and in local races all the way down to school boards, as Republicans try to maximize their base's turnout and win back swing voters in 2022.

While Glenn Youngkin's win last month in the off-year Virginia governor's race served as an early confidence booster for the GOP, governor's races as well as voting-rights and redistricting lawsuits in Georgia and Texas are among the big events to watch next year.

So are Senate races in battleground states including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and Wisconsin.

Why it matters: In the past decade, Republicans saw declines in suburban and women voters, who were turned off by the far-right flank of the party or Donald Trump.

Some say Democrats could unwittingly drive back into the GOP's arms a segment of these lost voters if they see Democrats' rhetoric and policy prescriptions for racial, ethnic and gender inequities as too extreme.

What they're saying: "Now you have a situation where it’s reversed, and the Democrats have become revolutionaries," said Jeff Roe, a GOP strategist whose candidates include Youngkin. "The Democrats have just jumped the shark."

Rising crime and concerns about inflation and the jobs market also are shaping Americans' views. 

Flashback: Last January, days before Youngkin entered the race, his team was struck by polling suggesting nonwhite, working-class voters in the state were more persuadable than upper-income former Republican voters.

Their data identified two reasons why, Roe said: Culture wars, especially in schools, and immigration, including a backlash against free tuition for undocumented students.

A third factor — vaccine mandates — emerged over the course of the campaign.

The other side: Many Democrats, including Stacey Abrams in Georgia and Beto O'Rourke in Texas, see addressing systemic racism as core to the party's ideals — and a sure way to motivate the base and voters of color to turn out.

Don't forget: An Axios-Ipsos survey in May identified questions around race as one of the deepest dividing lines between white Republicans and white Democrats.

It found that Black Americans were the most dissatisfied or worried about the status quo on issues from policing to employment to politics, while white Republicans were the most resistant to changes.

Asian and Hispanic Americans were somewhere in between those groups across a battery of questions about views and experiences.

White Democrats were most closely aligned with — and sometimes more change-oriented than — Black Americans.

The bottom line: Politics around racial issues are only getting more polarized. 

3. The boomerang bet

They're betting Democrats have gone too far politically to address systemic racism.

Illustrated collage of two eyes from different people surrounded by circles and lines. 

Republicans are betting that Democrats have gone too far in addressing systemic racism — so they&#x27;re leaning into culture wars over school curriculum, college admissions, voting rights, hiring practices and policing.Driving the news: These calculations are playing out in governor&#x27;s races, in the battle for control of both chambers of Congress, and in local races all the way down to school boards, as Republicans try to maximize their base&#x27;s turnout and win back swing voters in 2022.

Closer

Axios Closer

"Allyship" peaked as a hot term after the racial justice protests in the summer of 2020. Since then, its meaning and impact have been complicated by questions over what it looks like in action — what's "performative" or real. 

Why it matters: Activists for racial justice say allyship is the support and empathy from other groups that forces change — think the end of South Africa's apartheid system and the 1960s civil rights movement. 

Movements don't die, even when moments — like protests over George Floyd's death — come and go, says Ai-jen Poo, founder of the National Domestic Workers Alliance. 

"Real allyship is when the spotlight isn't on and when you're not in a moment: What are you doing to help strengthen the ecosystem of leadership that makes movements possible?"

State of play: Black Lives Matter rallies last summer raised awareness of discrimination and injustice for nearly all underrepresented people — not just Black Americans. 

The BLM protests gave rise to rallies against anti-Asian hate, recognition of harmful Indigenous stereotypes, and awareness of violence against trans people. 

Yes, but: Social support fatigue has set in and even set into motion a political backlash. This year's crusade against critical race theory is one example. 

Searches for the word "allyship" peaked near the height of the Black Lives Matter rallies and has never recovered, per a Google Trends analysis.

Similarly, terms related to Asian hate peaked in the spring this year.

Fear of shame or saying the wrong thing often outweighs fear of the status quo, leading to inaction, says Emani Cannady, an organizer with the Black-led prison abolitionist group Harriet's Wildest Dreams.

The big picture: Allyship in the workplace is just as fraught with gaps.

At work, 77% of employees consider themselves allies to women of color, but only 21% consistently advocate for new opportunities for them, according to a McKinsey and Lean In 2021 report on women in the workplace. Just 10% mentor or sponsor women of color. 

"The thing about allyship is it has to show up in everything — your day-to-day actions — [and that's] where a lot of employees don't always recognize where they have an opportunity to step up," said Jess Huang, a partner at McKinsey.

What they’re saying: "It's important to qualify who is this allyship thing new for, or uncomfortable for?" says Jodi-Ann Burey, a speaker and writer who works at the intersections of race, culture and health equity. 

That means potential allies need to let go of their own fears of a negative response, according to Cannady. "What’s important to you ... helping or your feelings?" 

The bottom line: "Allyship is a verb," Cannady said. 

“We need people to stand up and take [on] the problems born[e] of oppression as their own,” says Burey, quoting writer and professor Roxane Gay.

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to clarify that a statement attributed to speaker and writer Jodi-Ann Burey was referencing a quote by writer and professor Roxane Gay.

4. Allyship reaches an awkward stage

What it means to be an ally for racial justice has proven to be complicated.

Illustrated collage of a mouth, hand holding money, picket signs, ear and speech bubble with hashtag.

&quot;Allyship&quot; peaked as a hot term after the racial justice protests in the summer of 2020. Since then, its meaning and impact have been complicated by questions over what it looks like in action — what&#x27;s &quot;performative&quot; or real. Why it matters: Activists for racial justice say allyship is the support and empathy from other groups that forces change — think the end of South Africa&#x27;s apartheid system and the 1960s civil rights movement.

Twin Cities

Axios Twin Cities

A Minneapolis suburb's effort to overhaul its approach to public safety after George Floyd's murder and the fatal police shooting of Daunte Wright capture the challenges the movement faces in swiftly enacting major change.

Why it matters: If activist pressure to revamp policing could succeed anywhere, you'd think it would be Brooklyn Center, a diverse and solidly blue suburb about 10 miles from where Floyd was murdered.

The big picture: After Wright was killed, local leaders and activists embraced national calls to make cities less reliant on police officers by shifting responsibilities like responding to mental health crises and traffic enforcement to unarmed staff. 

But eight months later, after heated debate, the Brooklyn Center City Council passed a scaled-back budget resolution that some reform proponents say could hinder their efforts to fully implement the initiatives next year.

"I don’t want my son’s name on a resolution that is not going to be effective," Daunte's mother, Katie, said this week. 

Flashback: Wright was fatally shot by then-officer Kim Potter after he was pulled over for expired tags on April 11.

Attorneys for Potter, who is currently on trial for manslaughter charges, say she meant to grab her taser as Wright tried to flee an attempt to take him into custody for an unrelated arrest warrant. 

The 20-year-old's death, which occurred as the Derek Chauvin trial reignited community tensions in neighboring Minneapolis, sparked days of protests and calls to ban traffic stops for minor offenses. 

In the weeks following, Mayor Mike Elliott pledged bold action. He successfully pushed for the removal of both the police chief and the city manager over their opposition to immediately firing Potter.

In May, the City Council passed a resolution to create new departments for community safety and violence prevention, including divisions of unarmed professionals to respond to medical and mental health calls and non-moving traffic violations.

The catch: Brooklyn Center needed cash for the overhaul. The city manager warned in September that the full plan was "not fiscally possible" in the near term.

In November, with a budget deadline looming, Elliott proposed that the city pay for the plan by cutting $1.2 million from the police department, eliminating 14 vacant positions from the authorized force of 49 officers. 

The response: Concerns about crime and growing response times as more officers left the department this year fueled criticism from police and some members of the City Council and the public.

Brian Peters, a former Brooklyn Center police commander who now serves as executive director of the state's largest police association, said diverting funding "seeks to appease extremists at the expense of everyone else."

What happened: On Dec. 6, the City Council approved a compromise to freeze just three open police positions and raise lodging taxes to pay for the plan. 

Elliott says the final budget leaves the city hundreds of thousands of dollars short of what's needed to fully fund the new divisions.  

As a result, some key elements, including the 24/7 availability of mental health responders, will be scaled back, he said. 

What's next: The goal is to have the new divisions up and running by mid-2022. Supporters say they'll work to secure more funding. 

"Our commitment to fully implementing this resolution is stern — it's resolute," Elliott told Axios. 

Michelle Gross, a longtime local activist on police accountability, said the agreement is "not quite enough but it gives them a healthy start." Community reaction to the pilot programs and whether Brooklyn Center lawmakers allocate more cash in the 2023 budget will be even bigger tests, she added.

The bottom line: The saga in Brooklyn Center illustrates the challenge local leaders face in balancing calls for reform and public safety concerns, especially when confronted with the reality of tight municipal budgets. 

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5. Brooklyn Center's complicated path to police reform

The Minneapolis suburb seemingly had all the right conditions for rapid change.

Illustration of Black Lives Matter protestors holding an "I Can't Breath" sign. 

Photo illustration: Allie Carl/Axios. Photo: Chandan Khanna/Getty Images

Black History Month

A Minneapolis suburb&#x27;s effort to overhaul its approach to public safety after George Floyd&#x27;s murder and the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="fatal police shooting of Daunte Wright" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/police-shoot-driver-near-minneapolis-dc0adf73-8f16-413f-8aec-62f9fafd03b7.html" data-vars-content-id="0a28b4ee-d3c8-445f-814f-4c36305e425b" data-vars-headline="Brooklyn Center&#x27;s complicated path to police reform" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/police-shoot-driver-near-minneapolis-dc0adf73-8f16-413f-8aec-62f9fafd03b7.html" target="_self">fatal police shooting of Daunte Wright</a> capture the challenges the movement faces in swiftly enacting major change.Why it matters: If activist pressure to revamp policing could succeed anywhere, you&#x27;d think it would be Brooklyn Center, a diverse and solidly blue suburb about 10 miles from where Floyd was murdered.

Data: Google Trends; Chart: Jared Whalen/Axios

The share of Google searches about Black Lives Matter spiked shortly after Axios launched its Hard Truths series — but those have been overtaken by searches about critical race theory in recent months. 

Why it matters: The search trends provide a window into how the national conversation about racial justice has shifted over the course of this series.

A national awakening over systemic racism in the aftermath of George Floyd's death gave way to a backlash, with many Republicans criticizing — or attempting to ban — ways of teaching about racism in the classroom.

Meanwhile, most of the underlying, systemic issues plaguing Americans of color have stayed the same. 

By the numbers: Over the past year, Google searches related to BLM peaked around the time of the Jan. 6 siege on the Capitol, then slowly declined. 

There was far more search interest in BLM last year following the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others — as well as months of nationwide protests and riots.

Interest in critical race theory started rising in March, as news outlets (especially conservative-leaning ones) began drawing attention to the issue. 

Search interest peaked in mid-June, when the Florida State Board of Education banned the teaching of critical race theory in public schools. 

It spiked again in November around the time of Glenn Youngkin's gubernatorial win in Virginia, after a campaign that focused on critical race theory and other education issues. 

6. Critical race theory overtakes Black Lives Matter on Google searches

How the political conversation around race and racism has changed.

The share of Google searches about Black Lives Matter spiked shortly after Axios launched its Hard Truths series — but those have been overtaken by searches about <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="critical race theory" data-vars-click-url="https://www.edweek.org/leadership/what-is-critical-race-theory-and-why-is-it-under-attack/2021/05" data-vars-content-id="c88b663a-3fc5-4f79-930b-601ae26f866c" data-vars-headline="Critical race theory overtakes Black Lives Matter on Google searches" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.edweek.org/leadership/what-is-critical-race-theory-and-why-is-it-under-attack/2021/05" target="_blank">critical race theory</a> in recent months. Why it matters: The search trends provide a window into how the national conversation about racial justice has shifted over the course of this series.

It’s been 566 days since George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer. His death spurred millions of people across the globe to protest in support of Black lives. We examine the impact in three locations: United Kingdom, Mexico and Nigeria.

Guests: Aba Amoah, co-founder of Justice for Black Lives; Alice Krozer, professor at the Center for Sociological Research at the College of Mexico; and Chika Okeke-Agulu, director of the African studies program at Princeton University and professor of art and archeology

Credits: "Axios Today" is brought to you by Axios and Pushkin Industries. This episode was produced by Nuria Marquez Martinez and edited by Alexandra Botti. Alex Sugiura is our sound engineer. Julia Redpath is our executive producer. Special thanks to editor-in-chief Sara Kehaulani Goo.

7. The global impact of the Black Lives Matter movement

We're looking past our borders at how the protests over the unfair treatment of Black Americans became a global movement.

Axios Today

Latin America and Latinos

It’s been 566 days since George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer. His death spurred millions of people across the globe to protest in support of Black lives. We examine the impact in three locations: United Kingdom, Mexico and Nigeria.Guests: Aba Amoah, co-founder of Justice for Black Lives; Alice Krozer, professor at the Center for Sociological Research at the College of Mexico; and Chika Okeke-Agulu, director of the African studies program at Princeton University and professor of art and archeologyCredits: &quot;Axios Today&quot; is brought to you by Axios and Pushkin Industries. This episode was produced by Nuria Marquez Martinez and edited by Alexandra Botti. Alex Sugiura is our sound engineer. Julia Redpath is our executive producer. Special thanks to editor-in-chief Sara Kehaulani Goo.

Podcasts

Race and voting: The path forward

The first installment of the next phase of our Hard Truths series explores what's being tried to solve the problems of race and elections.

The next phase of our Hard Truths series explores the efforts to find solutions.

Photo illustration of a young Black man with the word "VOTE" painted on his forehead. 

Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo: Stephen F. Somerstein/Getty Images

Deep Dive: Hard Truths - Voting

The boomerang bet

Photo illustration of a Black Lives Matter protester in front of statues of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd 

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Alexi Rosenfeld, Bryan R. Smith/AFP, Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket via Getty Images)