Tiananmen Square: History often forgotten

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1989 Tiananmen Square Protests

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sourced by jordan

It is easy to remember your own birthday, maybe a few friends' birthdays as well. However, it is hard to forget historical events, war, assassination, liberation and incarceration when we have annual memorials, celebrations and hour long programs on network TV. A day that is just as worthy to remember globally, is often looked over. Why? The harmed and surviving are not allowed to talk about it.

It it illegal to commemorate or openly discuss in China a commonly referred to in Chinese as June Fourth Movement or June Fourth Incident a day that most of China's youth has no knowledge of. We can help where others struggle. We know it as: The Tiananmen Square Massacre.

In the summer of 1989 I was 11 years old and I hated social studies. I remember spotty images from the news on a Chinese student uprising and I remember "the tank guy" -because of a political comic in the local news questioning what he had in his little bag. It was not until 1994 when I had received a new audio CD with some music composed to fit history in a memorial sense that I heard of Tiananmen again. I made a brief connection to the story and again "the tank guy." In May 2005 I was in an international studies and geography course on China, that included history form 2000b.c. to present day. Around June 4th, we digressed to discuss something I had almost forgotten: Tiananmen.

The historical connections and implications of the Maoist regime and communism became obvious. What was not as obvious...the full story. I could talk for hours of what I recall from my class and mix in some information from wikis and hidden Chinese websites, instead I'll mention two things: the people and the icon. The rest you can find on wikipedia.

The People

Students first marched on Tiananmen after April 15, 1989 when the former Secretary General died from a heart attack in morning, and in relation to his resignation (Hu Yaobang - more information). Within the first few days the student gathering turned into a sit-in with over 10,000 students protesting...and there were more on the way. Over the next few days many more students came with support from professors as this Tiananmen demonstration was beginning to resemble April 5, 1976; a protest against the repression of the Chinese regime nearing the end of the Cultural Revolution. The difference between 1976 and other student protests in 1986-1989: the students were no longer marching alone.

Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989 is often looked at as just a student protest, but it wasn't. Due to increasing inflation and corruption the workers joined with the students. The protests grew into other cities besides Beijing -the people came together as a country and demanded change. By May 4th the crowd had grown to 100,000 people and a hunger strike soon began, bringing more support for those refusing to eat until change became progress.

Martial Law was declared on May 20, 1989 -tanks and troops entered the city and approached the square. The night of June 3rd shots were fired. Students, workers, citizens were beaten, shot and stabbed. The morning of June 4, 1989 the square had been cleared. Numbers for the death toll are debated today and range between 1,000 and 7,000.

The Icon

His identity is still unknown, but that mystery is part of what helps legends stay alive. On June 5, 1989 as the "tanks danced" into the surrounding Tiananmen area, a man carrying what looks like a shopping bag walked into the street. As the tanks approached him, he stood firm, unwavering. The tanks moved to the right -he followed. Swinging his grocery bag at the chain of war machines as if to say "Leave!" The lead tank turned off its engine and as whitenesses said it was as if everything stopped. Pure stillness and quiet in a moment that could bring tears to your eyes as you await the horror everyone felt would happen; it would be enevitiable. Or would it?

In one of the most shocking moments caught on film, the man boarded the tank and began to beat on it with his bare fists. He climbed higher trying to get into the tank, again beating it with his hands so hard you can hear the sound of flesh hitting hardened steel despite the footage being silent. The man climbed off the tank and again stepped in front, blocking their passage on the road. Eventually some bystanders pulled the man away fearing this would not end well.

Journalists that captured the iconic images on video and film were in a nearby hotel being shot at and later had their equipment raided. The images we were able to see are the result of film being placed in a toilet minutes before Chinese army broke into photographers' rooms.

Time Magazine labeled him as one of the most influential people of the 20th Century. The global population affectionately called him "the tank man". Today, many of China's youth have never seen photographs nor video of the events of Tiananmen. Additionally, even those with permits to be in Tiananmen Square are closely watched and policed with hundreds of government cameras that watch over the largest public gathering area that is history to some of the most dramatic history of its home country.

While we may never know his name, he will forever be an icon to the people of China as a symbol: we will not back down.

For the people of China, please don't let this story go untold.

Related:

• "Young clerk let Tiananmen ad slip past censors"; Reuters
• Documentary on the Icon; The Tank Man, Anthony Thomas (on Google Video)
• May 4th Movement; Wiki
• Mao Zedong (Maoist political system); Wiki