Local News

42 photos that defined New England in 2016

June 12: Lauren Blasetti of Medford stands with a crowd of hundreds on Boston Common for a rally in solidarity with the victims of the Orlando shooting massacre earlier in the day. The attack at Pulse Nightclub, which killed 49 people and injured 53, is the worst mass-shooting event in American history. Dina Rudick/Globe Staff

It’s a refrain that people have routinely repeated on social media and in casual conversation: Can 2016 be over already? This year, a seemingly unprecedented amount of tragedy, loss, and division has touched America. Much of that division was due to the most unconventional presidential election in recent memory, a campaign so full of hateful rhetoric and wild accusations that, no matter the result, millions of people were destined to believe the president-elect would bring about the end of the country as everyone knew it.  Even so, nestled in between the depressing moments were glimpses of resilience and triumph: embraces on Boylston Street at the Boston Marathon, emotional finishes at the Rio Olympics, exultant fist pumps from Tom Brady after finally putting the Deflategate saga behind him.These are the times in 2016—encapsulated in the photos below—that made us laugh, cry, and remind ourselves that no matter what transpired during the last 12 months, there’s always next year.

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