As 2016 comes to an end, it looks like a watershed year for violence, upheaval, and loss. Even those on the winning sides of pitched political battles like the US presidential election and Brexit are ready to put the vitriol that marked so much of this year to rest.

Before we close the door on 2016, we look back at some of the powerful writing that came out of the year’s tragedies and conflicts. Here’s some of the best of the current-events writing we read on WordPress over the past 12 months.

Race Relations and #blacklivesmatter

Look for an upcoming collection of our other favorite writing of the year, as well as posts highlighting the best of the year in poetry, art, and photography.

The spotlight on race relations and police violence in the United States that intensified after the Ferguson, Missouri, demonstrations of 2014 didn’t dim in 2016. Writing on her blog